The Contract
by TheSeparation
Summary: In a bid for power to fulfill his dreams, Naruto agreed to a deal with a Demon. He had not the slightest clue how that would change his life... [Original Version by Yagami Nguyen. Permission taken to work on this rewrite]
1. Prologue

**The Contract**

 **Prologue**

When the young man opened his eyes, he was greeted by the darkness of the night, broken only by the sliver of moonlight that slipped past the narrow space between his curtains.

He sighed.

It was unlikely that he would be able to return to the embrace of slumber; one of the many changes he had grown accustomed to since his transformation.

The faintest of movements to his left drew his eye and he was immediately reminded of his present surroundings.

It was a testament to how much of a regular occurrence being ensconced in the bodies of his women had become that he hadn't noticed until one of them had moved.

"Naruto-sama?"

The shy, sleepy voice draws his eyes to the slightly glazed pair of light brown orbs staring at him.

He was not surprised; among his human lovers, she was, without a doubt, the most fragile no matter how tough her public persona seemed.

He smiled warmly at her as he took her cheek in his palm. "Did you enjoy yourself tonight?"

She didn't reply verbally, choosing to nod happily as she nuzzled her cheek into his palm.

"Well, there's more where that came from." He guided her head back to the bed as he spoke, lulling her back to sleep. "So you'd better get some rest."

"Alright, Naruto-sama. Good night."

The moment her eyes drifted shut, he replaced himself with one of the clothes strewn about the room, tossed aside during their frenzied cloth removal earlier in the night.

Now free of their embrace, the blond walked up to the window and slipped behind the curtain, opting to not draw them as the flood of moonlight could rouse his lovers from their sleep.

He took in a deep breath, enjoying the refreshing scent of nature that always seemed to linger in the air around the village.

In the moonlit night, Konoha's beauty was only rivaled by the prevalent sense of peace that only the most powerful shinobi village could provide.

To the casual observer, the wandering hermit or the passing merchant, Konoha was the best place to be in the Elemental Nations, lacking the overwhelming show of force other Villages exhibited or the underlying sense of corruption that oozed out of them.

He knew better; Konoha was the worst of the shinobi villages, wallowing in its own corrupt filth as shadowy figures tugged on their strings and forced the Village to dance to their demands.

The once vaunted Will of Fire had been swallowed by darkness.

"Yuki."

The name was uttered so silently that, had anyone been listening, they might have thought it a trick on their senses.

Yet, the one he had summoned heard him clearly.

The curtain beside him billowed outward as a new figure appeared; first, a sleek, silvery-white fox slipped out of the darkness as though it had always been there and then, it grew larger, changing as it went until a svelte beauty stood by his side, her hand over her heart and her head bowed.

"My lord."

"Report."

The woman straightened up and clasped her hands at the small of her back. "Lady Tsunade has almost completed the diversion of funds into the accounts you requested, my lord and Shiho has completed the decryption. She assures me that she will finalize the fake Scroll within forty-eight hours. Also, Levy has completed the rune script to tear down the Kurama clan's barrier. She's standing by with Lady Erza and Kagura for your command."

He smiled upon hearing the last part. Levy's skill with scripts far outshone most things he had seen humans do with seals; pleased as he was, he wasn't surprised that she had cracked the barrier's seal structure within hours of her arrival."Tell them to wait. We'll need Shiho and Baa-chan's parts completed before we can leave. How about the clans?"

"They remain unaware, my lord. The Hyuga and Inuzuka clan heads' demands of Lady Tsunade regarding Hanabi's disappearance have kept the clans in enough disarray for the little 'errors' to slip by unnoticed such as the mission involving the investigation of suspicious activity in the Land of Tea being given to the jonin on our side, rather than those selected by the jonin commander."

"Excellent."

"Will that be all, my lord?"

Naruto turned to the the silvery-haired blond and saw the flash of lust in her gray eyes. "Do you have any place you need to be right now?"

"Nothing urgent, my lord."

"Well then, how about you… rest here? You can leave in the morning."

A lascivious grin split her features. "You are far too kind, my lord."

Naruto's grin was every bit as lustful as hers.

Konoha would burn, he would make sure of that, but it could wait just a bit longer.

His women came first.

In every sense of the word.


	2. Day 1: Chapter 1

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 1-** _ **Decision**_

‹‹‡››

" _You gotta move faster kid!" Jiraiya barked as he sidestepped Naruto's fist and delivered a vicious slap to the boy's skull. "And don't just throw yourself into your attacks, anticipate your opponent's moves and ALWAYS be prepared to react accordingly! Haven't you learned anything over the past two years?"_

 _ **Nothing I couldn't have learned back home.**_

 _Naruto shook his head, physically trying to dislodge the snarky thought as he tried to think up a way to defeat his mentor. He took too long though, and Jiraiya capitalized brutally with a fist almost shearing through his abdomen in retaliation._

" _Never drop your guard!"_

 _The blond gritted his teeth, biting back the pain as he grabbed on to the offending fist with one hand and slammed twin retaliatory blows to his mentor's snarky mug._

 _It dissolved into mud beneath him._

 _His eyes widened by a hair and he immediately replaced himself with a tree branch._

 _A moment later, the branch was skewered by a thousand muddy needles._

' _Fuck it!' Naruto swore as he imediately began to creep through the underbrush. 'I need to get my head in the game!'_

 _ **No offense, man, but is there really a point? I mean, you're here getting beat up by one man. A Sannin, granted, but just ONE man. Sasuke's getting his ass in gear with the resources of an entire Village. A minor one, admittedly, but they've got their own Sannin and a genius to boot. Not to mention ol' Four-Eyed Kabuto with his insane skills and, if the Sound Four and the freaky bone guy are any indication, a whole squad of jonin level shinobi. The Perv's training you like you're going up against a single enemy while the guy who will be going up against a single enemy's getting prepped for an all out war.**_

' _You're…' Naruto snapped out of his almost trance-like state with a violent jerk. Realizing how close he had come to agreeing withthe voice in his head, the blond clamped down on all thoughts and focused on taking his mentor down with a vengeance…_

‹‹‡››

" _Come on boy!" Jiraiya whined, chasing after a briskly walking Naruto on his knees. "I need the cash!"_

" _To chase some hooker, no doubt." Naruto scoffed as he marched away._

 _Jiraiya's expression, though, had gone from pleading to disturbingly perverse. "Oh~ kid you had to have seen her! That wasn't just_ some _hooker, she was an absolute BABE! Tits as big as my head and an ass you could bounce a coin off! And her legs!"_

 _ **THIS is what I'm training with? The perverted idiot of the Sannin? So, Sasuke's getting trained by the genius of the Sannin, a direct contender for the Big Hat alongside the Yellow Flash and the guy that ended the Old Man's stellar life and we're getting trained by the Perverted Sannin. Wonderful. No, fuck sarcasm! Even Sakura had a better deal. At least her Sannin won't bug her for cash so she could go check out strippers and shit. I mean for the love of- Orochimaru's a fucking genius! He's on a similar level to the fucking Fourth Hokage! He's a verified sword master. He knows more ninjutsu techniques than most shinobi ever get to even witness! Sasuke, the angst ridden gay emo gets THAT guy and you're stuck with the guy who's biggest claim to fame is that he trained the Fourth? Is there anyway you could have come up with an even worse deal?!**_

" _Shut the fuck up and leave me alone!" Naruto roared angrily._

 _Jiraiya, who had been caught mid-rant when his apprentice snapped, simply thought he might have pushed the limit and decided to head into the brothel on his own. The madam of the house knew him well and, unlike his busty teammate, he had a reputation for maintaining minimal, if any, debts._

 _Had he bothered to dig deeper, he might have figured that something was off with his apprentice…_

‹‹‡››

" _So, Naruto, what's the first thing you wanna do when we get back to Konoha?" Jiraiya asked. Himself and his apprentice were relaxing in a meadow a few miles away from the Land of Bears, taking the day off to relax and unwind. "Me, I'm gonna hit up Tsunade first; see if she's finally come around to my manly charms."_

" _The only thing manly about you is your hair, Pervy Sage." Naruto shot back with a grin. "And even_ that's _longer than most women wear their hair."_

" _Oi! Don't diss these locks you little brat!"_

" _I'll diss 'em when I want to old man!" The blond shot back playfully._

 _For the next few moments, nothing came up until Jiraiya spoke again. "I'm still waiting for your answer kiddo."_

 _To be honest, Naruto wasn't quite sure of what he wanted; over the past few weeks, doubts and fears had set into his heart and, no matter how hard he tried to ignore them, they had burrowed in deep. He did, however, know what to say to his mentor. "First things first, I wanna see Sakura-chan again! She must have grown quite lots with Baa-chan training her! I bet she'll be really awed by how I've grown too! Might even get her to go out with me."_

 _Where he lay, a few paces away, Jiraiya winced. "Might not wanna get your hopes on that kiddo."_

 _ **See? Even your mentor doesn't believe you stand a chance with the pink haired board.**_

" _I mean, she's always had her hopes strung up on the Uchiha right?" Jiraiya continued, not noticing the conflicted look on his protege's face. "I know a number of people might believe that_ that's _all a kids' dream but… Look man, take it from someone in similar shoes… You really should get your heart off that train. Even the whole 'save the Uchiha' train… I think you should be prepared for the kid not_ wanting _to come back; Orochimaru's a skilled manipulator and if I know that bastard anywhere close to what I think I know, then he'll have done his absolute best to turn the Uchiha against you."_

 _Naruto hadn't heard a word of Jiraiya's, his mind clouded by dark thoughts, until Jiraiya had talked about Orochimaru corrupting Sasuke beyond redemption._

 _It was the final push; the emotions he had bottled up, from his lonely Academy years right up to that moment, broke forth like a dam…_

‹‹‡››

When Naruto opened his eyes, he expected to find himself on a cot in one of Jiraiya's many bunkers, wrapped up in bandages and feeling the burn of his chakra coils as they healed. His sense of timing was all messed up but the last few moments before slipping into unconsciousness were still fresh in his mind…

 _The rage… the pain…_

He remembered everything…

 _Right up to the moment his control had slipped and the red haze of his biju's chakra blurred everything out of sight…_

Guilt wasn't a strong enough term for what he felt as he returned to consciousness.

All that rage turned into a bubbling pit of rage when he fully noticed his surroundings.

Red walls, huge pipes, a never ending flow of water…

He was within his own mind, at the bridge between himself and the seal.

"Kyubi." His voice was like steel as he pushed to his feet and began storming down the cathedral-like hallway. Things were beginning to make sense now; he had never been one to be bothered by dark thoughts, his childhood having taught him that the only way to remain even slightly sane was to ignore all dark thoughts, so the barrage of discouraging and disquieting questions he had been plagued by over the past couple of weeks just **had** to have been caused by the Nine-Tailed Fox. It would also explain why he had so readily been consumed by its power; his actions had never truly been his own.

" **Blaming me for everything again?"**

The thundering boom of the Kyubi snapped him out of his rage-filled fugue as he realized that he had arrived at the gates.

The shock barely lasted two seconds before being drowned out by rage.

"Blaming you?! What, I should be thanking you?! You have been pouring your hate-filled tripe into my head, filling my every waking thought with your bullshit and then taking advantage of me to try to get free!"

" **Funny how you came to that conclusion."**

Naruto stood back and crossed his arms over his chest. "There's a different conclusion?"

The Fox resting on its haunches, cracked open a crimson eyelid. **"Are you interested? Or was that just plain sarcasm?"**

"Oh no, let's hear your side of the story." Naruto shot back. "I mean, I wouldn't want to judge you wrongly or anything."

" **Well then… First off, you said I'd been filling your head with my 'hate-filled tripe', congratulations on rightly using the tripe by the way, you're getting just a bit less stupid."**

"Is there a point to all this?"

" **Don't interrupt, that's rude. Anyway, I'd like to ask: which of those 'mental assaults' of mine was actually filled with hate?"**

The blond immediately opened his mouth to fire off a snarky response…

And found himself gaping instead as he simply couldn't think of a single instance.

The Kyubi flashed its teeth at him in a macabre grin. **"Nothing? Well, let's move on shall we? Point two: why exactly do you think** _ **I've**_ **been the one doing the head-filling?"**

This time, Naruto was ready and he immediately spouted a number of reasons related to him not having such fears ordinarily.

" **You done?"** The Kyubi asked after his impassioned response. Upon receiving the blond's nod, the biju proceeded to laugh its ass off, even thrashing about in hilarity-induced spasms for good measure. **"Oh damn kid! You are hilarious! You really think** _ **I**_ **could simply walk through your mind and suss out your deepest, darkest fears to manipulate you?** Abruptly, the biju's features became fierce. **"Newsflash you nitwit: this seal prohibits even a single hair on my tail from slipping out! I sure as hell can't go zipping through your cranium. And don't even get me started on that stupid idea that I'd spend my time watching you do human things; I couldn't care less about your puny existence either way!"**

"Says the creature that's recorded as a mass of hate!"

" **By whose records? Humans? The same people that see you as my spawn? The same species that hate you indiscriminately even though** _ **they**_ **created the means to create more jinchuriki in the first place?"** The biju's scathing response was like a hammer strike to his already weakened belief, a fact that the biju saw and mercilessly pounced upon. **"I didn't send those thoughts to you, boy, they were born of your own thoughts."** This time, the biju's voice was low and almost soothing. **"And I think you know why such thoughts cloud your mind."**

Naruto turned away from the cage and took a step forward… before going still.

He did know; for the longest time he had suspected as much but he had consciously shoved it down and piled on tons of false optimism to bury it.

He wasn't strong enough.

Whether he liked it or not, he just wasn't strong enough on his own to attain his goals. He had been cheated in the Academy, yes, but he had been out for more than four years, a great portion of which had been spent with Jiraiya, and he could see no significant changes.

He wanted to be the Hokage, he wanted to earn the respect of the people… he wanted to fulfill his promise to Sakura and bring Sasuke back.

And he just. Wasn't. Strong. Enough.

Behind him, the biju watched as he struggled to make a decision with a satisfied smirk. True to its word, it had not _sent_ the thoughts to the young shinobi. That didn't mean it was totally innocent either; a gradual diversion of its chakra into the boy's yin chakra had been all that was required for his repressed thought to resurface and weaken that resolve he was so proud of. Now, as the biju watched, reading into every nuance of his body language, it knew it had succeeded.

The time to reap the benefits was near; the final step was…

"So why are you telling me now?"

The biju's smirk turned savage. The boy wanted to know; the interest was there.

" **In my time here, I have come to understand what power means to you humans,"** it lied, **"and as such I am willing to sign a contract with you."**

The human scowled. "A few hours ago, I'd have ranted about you wanting my soul or seeking an escape but now… Details. I want details."

The biju chuckled, the sound booming out in waves that rattled his teeth. Nevertheless, Naruto stood, glaring at the biju; awaiting answers.

" **Perhaps your time with the old man** _ **wasn't**_ **a complete waste; you certainly seem more intelligent."** Abruptly, the humor disappeared from the biju's countenance and the creature rose up, resting on its hind legs. **"You humans see us as walking masses of chakra, an opinion that never ceases to baffle me. After all, if we walked around wreaking havoc everywhere then your history should have been significantly altered by our actions.**

" **In my time walking among your kind, I learned a great deal; fighting styles, meditation techniques and forms of chakra manipulation that have long since been lost to the ravages of time. It is these I offer you; the power to command the very elements, to become an unstoppable force on the battlefield… Everything I know, I freely give.**

" **However, I understand how impatient your kind are, no doubt as a result of your short lifespan, and so I offer you something more: balance."**

"I don't understand."

" **I did not expect you to. You see, at its root, chakra is of two forms: Yin chakra and Yang chakra. You possess an overabundance of the latter yet very little, comparatively speaking, of the former. It is this imbalance that has limited your progress in the illusory arts. I can fix this."**

If nothing else had caught his attention, the biju knew that this certainly would.

Once again, it wasn't wrong.

"How?"

" **I will, with your permission, channel a minute fraction of my chakra through you. Without going into specifics, it will forcibly jump start the creation of Yin chakra within your coils and, over a period of about five days, your chakra circulatory system will gradually attain an equilibrium state, generating an equal amount of Yin chakra as it does Yang chakra."**

Naruto's face went slack as he considered the sheer implication of that singular benefit. "My chakra reserves… they'll…"

" **Double?"** The biju prompted. **"At the very least."**

The offer seemed too good to be true; learning ancient styles of combat, gaining the ability to use genjutsu, an increased chakra capacity? Naruto wanted to take it. Practically every brain cell he had screamed at him to ump on the offer.

Then, his eyes narrowed. "At what cost?"

An offer that was so mouth-watering **had** to bear a cost.

The biju glared at him, seemingly sizing him up yet again, before speaking. **"An offer as this should bear a great number of requirements, boy, but I will only ask of two things from you; the first and the greatest is** _ **trust.**_ **"** The biju leaned forward until its snout was a mere inches away, separated by the bars that held it locked away. **"I will not tell** __ **you what the second cost is until you have signed my contract."**

Naruto was torn.

On one hand, he would very likely be selling his soul over to a demon because, regardless of what the biju would have him believe, indoctrinated beliefs didn't die out over a mere chat.

On the other, much heavier, hand, he would be granted the kind of power that he had always desired; the kind of power that would help him achieve his goals.

' _I'm going to be the Hokage someday, Iruka-sensei! Believe it!'_

' _I'll get Sasuke back for you, Sakura-chan! That's a promise of a lifetime!'_

' _I never go back on my words! That's my ninja way! Believe it!'_

A wise man once said: 'A man is undone by the words of his own mouth.'

"What do I do?"

That man was right.

" **Step into the cage, boy, and hold out your arm to your side."**

This was it.

It was one thing to agree to a thing but, when confronted with the enormity of their decision, many wavered and most backed down.

They were **not** Uzumaki Naruto.

With a confident stride that betrayed none of his apprehension, the shinobi stepped out of his realm and into the demon's lair.

The biju reared upward, sucking in a deep breath, its eyes never leaving his.

 _Don't move,_ it seemed to say, just before it lurched forward, the dull orange glow in the back of its throat the only warning Naruto had before being engulfed in flame.


	3. Day 1: Chapter 2

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 2-** _ **Deal**_

" _ **Step into the cage, boy, and hold out your arm to your side."**_

 _This was it._

 _It was one thing to agree to a thing but, when confronted with the enormity of their decision, many wavered and most backed down._

 _They were_ _ **not**_ _Uzumaki Naruto._

 _With a confident stride that betrayed none of his apprehension, the shinobi stepped out of his realm and into the demon's lair._

 _The biju reared upward, sucking in a deep breath, its eyes never leaving his._

 _Don't move, it seemed to say, just before it lurched forward, the dull orange glow in the back of its throat the only warning Naruto had before being engulfed in flame._

Shock, fear, anger… myriad emotions surged through him in the split second before the fire engulfed him before settling on cold determination, fueled by his steely focus.

The biju had asked him to trust it.

He did.

The biju showed itself worthy of his trust.

He didn't burn.

No, that was an understatement; rather than feeling the agony of his flesh sloughing in the heat, he felt abnormally refreshed; invigorated.

And, in his outstretched right hand, he found himself holding onto a small, cylindrical object.

He didn't attempt to move. The biju's flames still washed over him and it had not told him to move; he wasn't dead, neither did he feel 'possessed' so there was no reason to be impatient.

Finally, the flames died down and his vision was once again filled with the biju's visage, looming in the darkness of the seal.

" **You trusted me."**

It sounded surprised, as though it hadn't quite expected him to have taken all that had happened in stride.

"I don't go back on my word. I may not have been explicit about it but I agreed to trust you. There's no going back from that."

Something flashed through the biju's eyes, too fast for him to pin it down, before the fox leaned forward. **"In your hand rests the Summoning Contract for the Kitsune of the Tsuba Plains. Mark it as you did the Toad Summoning Contract."**

Naruto had unrolled the scroll, bitten into his thumb and was about to smear his blood across the designated line when the impact of her words struck and he snapped his head upward, seeking the biju's gaze. "A Summon… ing… Con… tract…"

His words had trailed off into silence when, seeking for the biju that had abruptly disappeared, his eyes fell upon the most perfect being he had ever laid eyes upon.

Entire schools of etymologists spending their lifetime working would never have found a word to capture the image of perfection before him.

Hair like the most glorious sunset reaching the small of her back, eyes like the most perfectly preserved amber, a face carved by the gods and blessed with an ethereal beauty…

"Beautiful…"

The word tumbled out of his mouth, though he didn't realize that he had uttered it.

At that moment, the blood from his now healed thumb splashed on the scroll and a muted flash shone from the scroll as it disappeared.

Naruto never noticed it, enraptured as he was by the vision before him.

"Well… it's nice to see that I've still got it."

Even her _voice_ sounded like something divine! Naruto just couldn't wrap his mind around it. If he wasn't distracted, he would have made the connection between the disappearance of the biju and the appearance of this angel but as it was…

"Who…" He stopped, swallowed, tried again. "Who are you?" Success, though his voice sounded like the dying rasps of a dehydrated toad.

The angel arched an eyebrow, amusement visible on her features. "Hmm? I'd have thought the tails would have given you a hint."

Truth be told, Naruto's gaze hadn't even _strayed_ past her chin. Her words, however, seemed to wield a mystical power over his body and he found himself tracing every dip and swell of her body.

If her face was angelic then her body belonged to the queen of succubi.

Her olive skin seemed to glow beneath the white, translucent robe she had materialized.

'Jiraiya was right,' Naruto noted absently as he drank in the sight before him, 'there really is something uniquely alluring about a woman perched on the line between wearing clothes and going starkers.'

The robe did _nothing_ to hide the curves of her body, from the swell of her breasts to the dip of her waist and the flare of her hips yet it did _everything_ to conceal her most vital parts.

Suddenly, he sneezed.

The action was just incongruous enough to snap him out of his daze. For a few seconds, his eyes were as unfocused as his mind until he latched on to something that _wasn't_ part of the seductress before him.

At least, that was his initial thought.

As his eyes followed their target, an odd feeling grew in his belly until he reached the source.

The 'something' he had latched on to was a tail.

To be more specific, it was one of the _nine_ orange, black-tipped tails that writhed slowly behind the angel.

Realization hit with the force of a speeding bullet train.

"Kyuubi?!"

"Give the man a prize!" She smirked. Then, she tilted her head, that insufferable smile still planted on her face. "Wait. No, that's _Queen_ Kyuubi to you, peasant. No prizes for you."

Reality seemed to take a hard left as bits and pieces of information began to blend together and clarity arrived.

 _In my time here, I have come to understand what power means to you humans…_

 _In my time walking among your kind…_

'Those weren't metaphors or whatever! It- _She!-_ literally walked among humans!'

But his mind came to a grinding halt

"The tails." His voice was shaky again; shaky and raspy. "How did you hide the tails?"

The Queen's eyebrow went up again. "I just went from a multi-storey tall fox to a woman bearing fox-like tails. You really think I can't get rid of the tails if I had to?"

"R- right." The blond coughed once, simultaneously clearing his throat and doing his best to comport himself. "Right. Um… you're a Queen?"

Kyuubi laughed, ad to him, it was as though a choir of angels laughed with her. "All that effort trying to look calm and that's your first question?"

Casual as it was, the comment served its purpose, breaking up the tension he felt inside and, before long, he found himself able to breath easy in her presence; not completely relaxed but certainly not as tense as before.

"I uh… I guess it just sort of… came out." He scratched the back of his head, a nervous tic that he didn't even realize that he had. "Seriously, though, you're a Queen?"

"I am; the Great Queen of Makai and the Grand Chieftain of the Kitsune of the Tsuba Plains. You should feel honored; you're the first to see this form in ages." She acknowledged. "Do I meet your expectations?"

Naruto swallowed, wondering how to tell her that she had _utterly destroyed_ any expectations he might have had in his wildest dreams.

An angelic face perched above succubus' body.

A study in contrasts.

"I'll take the string of drool as a yes."

That snapped him back to reality.

"Sorry." He apologized as he wiped off the- _God this is embarrassing!-_ line of drool that trailed down to his chest. "The new look kinda caught me off guard."

"I'll say." She drawled lazily as she walked around him- _Poetry in motion!-_ , blatantly sizing him up as she moved.

"So… uh- I should get to marking the Contract-" he fumbled around, searching for the scroll, "I mean, you talked about a second requirement and…"

He trailed off when she came to a halt right in front of him, her amber eyes seemingly staring up into the depths of his soul. Absently, he noted that he was taller than her, the top of her hair just reaching his lower lip.

"I did talk about a second requirement…" She purred, running a finger up from his waist all the way to his jaw. "How… good of you to remember…"

She was driving him crazy; she had to know the effect she was having on him yet she showed not even the _slightest_ hesitation.

She wasn't going to back down, not with the way she was essentially _gluing_ her body to his, flesh separated by just a scant few layers of clothing that did _nothing_ to reduce the sheer _heat_ he could feel radiating off her.

She.

Was.

Not.

Going.

To.

Back.

Down.

Her next words were blatant proof.

"You know… it has been _ages_ since I had any form of pleasure…" The way she dragged out the last word had shivers running up and down his spine. "So how about it huh? You give me a damned good pounding and I'll take that as the second requirement. Sound good?"

She could have offered to fuck him up the ass with a two foot cock and he'd have jumped at the chance with how wound up she had him.

The Queen graced him with a smile that did nothing to slake his lust as her hands slipped under his jumpsuit and, in a show of inhuman strength, ripped the clothes apart, leaving him in just his pants… for the time being…

She traced every inch of his skin with her fingernails, admiring the sculpted form that his training had given him. "Your sensei might not be the best for you but I must thank him for keeping you in such shape." She whispered as she hooked a leg around his waist, her movements becoming more urgent, her lips nibbling at his earlobes as frantically as her hands played over his skin.

Within the recesses of her mind, though, she was cackling in delight. She knew she had him; one mind blowing orgasm was all she needed to gain a foothold into his heart. From there, she would have him facilitate her release and her vengeance against the village of the bastard that had enslaved her, the village that had seen her as nothing more than a monster when _they_ had been the ones to keep her locked away as some wild beast, away from her home; from her people-!

Naruto's slight grunt of pain had her realize that she was pressing her nails a bit too hard in her building rage, prompting her to immediately dial her hatred back.

It was still there, though, the rage, the hate… it was all there, simmering… waiting for the chance to be let loose.

And she had the perfect conduit for that rage.

Naruto grunted as he felt her yank his pants down viciously, her hands flying toward his semi-erect dick. He had no clue what he had gotten himself into.

Kyuubi, though, stopped short when she laid eyes on his cock. She had doubted her own hands, thinking that his cock certainly couldn't be as large as she felt but now…

It wasn't the biggest she'd ever had, willingly or otherwise, but she knew the average human size and had expected as much.

As it was, her cunt as a drooling mess as she took in the boy's member. "Twelve inches of cunt-busting meat with about two and a half inches girth and a nice, big pair of balls to complete the package… Oh, Uzumaki Naruto I am going to have **fun** with you…" She held his cock head with one hand while the other slid sensually up-and-down his cock, occasionally getting her fingernails involved, enjoying the slight hiss of apprehension that accompanied it. After a few moments of this, she moved the hand at his cock head to his balls, fondling them with absolute expertise, enjoying the way his body shuddered involuntarily. "Oh dear boy… if you think _this_ is any good then you're about to be blown right off your rocker." And, with that assurance, she pushed the blond onto his back.

Naruto was surprised when, instead of conking his head on the ground, he felt himself fall onto a pile of cushions.

"Surprised?" Kyuubi smirked at him as she sensually crawled up to hover right before him, her amber eyes staring into his. "You're not the only one with the control on this side of those gates…" She trailed off as she lowered her hips so that her cunt was grinding onto his cock, bathing him in her heat and slathering him in her juices. "Now… let's see if I can't break in my new toy…"

With excruciating slowness, she lifted herself until she was perched right at the tip of his dick, drawing out his anticipation until he groaned with need. Taking the unintelligible moan as her cue, she sank slowly onto his cock, all while staring into Naruto's glazed eyes. He couldn't handle it; his eyes rolled back in his head as he gripped her waist tightly and his cock convulsed as he moaned in ecstasy. His whole body shook as he came hard inside her cunt.  
When Naruto opened his eyes- _when did I close them?!-_ the first thing he saw was her satisfied smirk, her eyes radiating self-satisfaction.

"Let me guess; you can swear that never happens?"

The blond's eyes narrowed as the single-minded determination he was known for coalesced around a single decision.

Faster than she could blink, Kyuubi found herself staring up into _his eyes_ , their cerulean blue glinting with laser-like focus as his entire body language shifted.

The Queen had the odd feeling that she had just become prey.

Then, in an abrupt turn of events, he lowered his face to hers, inching closer and closer to hers until…

"Honey, the game's not over yet…"

Kyuubi felt a trill of pleasure race down her spine at the sheer confidence in the blond's words, a trill that became a tingle when he began nibbling on her earlobe, his hands moving from her hips to the neck of her robe and, with a sharp yank, her chest was laid bare.

Naruto began his assault, tracing a random pattern of feathery kisses down her skin as he moved down to her neck then down to the valley between her bountiful breasts. His hands were just as busy, massaging the sides of her breasts when his mouth was occupied with a nipple or pinching and rolling the hard nubs of her nipples while his lips left hickeys around her breasts.

"You- oh!- you certainly are- mm!- much better than I anticipated!"

Naruto said nothing; instead, a hand shot down to the center of her thighs and began to tease the woman, never directly touching her pussy but playing around _just_ close enough to keep the pleasurable anticipation mounting. At the same time, he began to move his face lower, leaving a shiny trail in his wake as he traced her every curve on her flat stomach and taking a moment to tongue her belly button.

Kyuubi didn't know how but she found herself waiting with bated breath as he closed in on her pussy, closing her eyes in anticipation when he kissed just above her slit…

Teeth nibbling gently on her clit…

Two fingers, shoved straight up her cunt, pumping furiously…

Continuous flicking of her nipple…

Stars burst into being behind her eyelids.

Naruto smirked as he felt her body stiffen before writhing convulsively and he shifted up until his cock was nestled between her pussy lips. He watched as her eyes rolled back until the whites showed and savored every moment of her orgasm.

And then, just as sanity began to return to her, he thrust into her pussy until his cock was fully sheathed in her cunt.

Stunned by his forcefulness, Kyuubi couldn't react for the first few moments, her mind submerged by the pleasurable feeling of being stuffed by the already thrusting cock inside of her; she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, brought her lips up to his, and moaned deep into his mouth. With each motion, Naruto's cock rubbed against all of Kyuubi's most sensitive places, and she was soon climbing toward a second orgasm. Kyuubi had forgotten what it was like to not be in control during sex; to be at the mercy of her lover, and Naruto was reminding her just how incredible that could feel. But _she_ was the Queen and she simply couldn't let him have his way.

"Not bad…" She purred into his ear as she began to lift her hips, pushing into him as he thrust into her. "but I'm better."  
Naruto felt her hips rise to meet him with each thrust, their bodies falling into sync, and he had never felt closer to anyone in his life. They held each other as they fucked, an embrace charged with lust and he could feel the orgasm building within Kyuubi's body as well as within his own. With narrowed eyes, he thrust harder, slamming into her with wild abandon and increasing the pace of their rut.  
Their fucking was now wild and desperate, the two pushing each other frantically toward their building climax. Sweat flew off with every collision of their bodies; his hands had returned to maul her tits and her hand gripped his ass tighter than ever; at some point, they had locked lips and were even then dueling with their tongues as hard as they were fucking.

Simultaneously, the two shook with ecstasy as powerful orgasms washed over them. Connected as they were, deep within Naruto's mindscape, each felt everything the other felt, and after a full minute of overwhelming euphoria, the two pulled apart, Naruto rolling over to lay beside Kyuubi on their mountain of pillows, drenched in sweat and love juices, panting heavily.

As he calmed, and his senses returned to him, Naruto grinned cockily. "Did that please her majesty?"

"Barely." Kyuubi reply was a lazy, almost bored drawl. "Considering that I'm a couple of decades out of shape and you're supposed to be at your prime…"

"Says the woman writhing on my dick."

"Like I said… I'm out of shape."

‹‹‡››


	4. Day 1: Chapter 3

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 3-** _ **New Futures**_

 _ **At The Moment The Contract Was Marked…**_

Many considered the _O-Gama Sennin_ of Mount Myobokuzan a lazy old toad, content to sit in his great chair and spew riddles, rhymes and comments that just didn't make any sense.

Well, that one time with the prophecy about 'one who's choices would save the world' and all that had elevated his standing in their eyes but only just a bit.

Many of the younger toads who were born after the Exodus, held steadfastly to that notion.

To the slightly more informed, such as Gamabunta's peers who were just like young Gamakichi during the Exodus, he was the Great Sage.

Nothing more, nothing less.

However, to those closest to him; Fukasaku, Shima, Bunta and the few who remembered their true home, and the young human, Jiraiya whom they saw as one of their own, he was a force of nature, powerful and wise and blessed with the gift of Sight.

The same Sight that had shown him the end of their home and the life that lay beyond the Exodus… The Sight that had shown him the beginnings of the Prophecy and the futures that lay ahead.

It was thus very worrisome when, quite abruptly, a number of those futures simply disappeared.

Futures were not absolute, he knew that, but in all the time since received the Sight he had never seen so many futures simply vanish.

"Well… this doesn't bode-"

" _O-gama Sennin-sama!_ "

The Great Sage rolled his bulbous eyes.

Kids these days. Couldn't they try to figure things out on their own _before_ running to the nearest adult?

"O-Gama Sennin-sama!" Fukasaku panted as he skidded to a stop inches before colliding into the Great Sage's chair, Shima mere seconds behind him. "We got here as fast as we could! Gamamaru just reported in-"

"His name just disappeared!" Shima wailed, her shock blatant in her tone. "Naruto-boy's name just disappeared from the list of Summoners!"

The Great Sage simply blinked lazily. "That is strange…"

"Never has a name simply vanished from the list!" Shima continued, "Even in death, their names simply fade to light scratches, they never disappear completely!"

"Intriguing… Have you tried asking Jiraiya…?"

"We should try asking Jiraiya-boy!" Fukasaku suggested, his webbed hands already moving through the handseals. "He might have an idea of what's happening!"

The Great Sage sighed.

Kids…

‹‹‡››

 _As he calmed, and his senses returned to him,_ _Naruto grinned cockily_ _._ _"Did that please her majesty?"_

" _Barely." Kyuubi reply was a lazy, almost bored drawl. "Considering that I'm a couple of decades out of shape and you're supposed to be at your prime…"_

" _Says the woman writhing on my dick."_

" _Like I said… out of shape."_

"Weirdest 'best dream' ever." Naruto smiled as he strolled out of his tent into the chilly morning air.

He had woken up about five minutes ago and, while his brain booted up, he immersed himself in the fragments of the dream that still stuck to him, enjoying the illusion of boning a hot kitsune.

"Heh, I'm becoming as bad as Ero-Sennin…" He chuckled as his eyes scanned the horizon for even a hint of sunlight. "Huh. Guess I've got about thirty minutes to spare. Odd, I'm never this active when I wake up early."

It was no news to those that knew him that Uzumaki Naruto was _**not**_ a morning person. In fact, when he realized that he'd have to wake up early as a shinobi, he had factored in a thirty minute 'booting phase' into his daily schedule.

Morning was only truly 'morning' when the sun was _fully_ above the horizon.

With him feeling so energetic, however, Naruto decided to indulge in a personal pastime; soaking.

He wasn't sure when it had become so but he absolutely _enjoyed_ a good soak; perhaps it was somewhere between the 'strange' scarcity of water he had always experienced as a child and enjoying the feeling of drifting off and imagining the water carrying all the hatred and loathing of the village away…

The sound of running water drew him like a siren's song and, within moments, he was chest deep in the little brook that bounded their little resting spot.

Not a thought crossed his mind in the first few minutes as he simply relaxed and allowed the cool water to run over him like he was nought but a pebble. Then, a thought struck him.

'Shouldn't this water be really cold? I mean, the sun's not even up yet. Plus, my skin should still be a bit tender after…'

" _You do realize that the changes I promised have already begun don't you?"_

Naruto jumped out of the water in a burst of motion, scanning the marshy bank of the brook for whoever it was that had just snuck up on him.

Unfortunately, the bank of the brook was marshy and wet and, thusly, slippery.

The moment his left foot touched the ground, it slid backward, dragging his weight downward. His right leg, though, had sunk into the wet soil and adamantly refused to come out.

The result was that Naruto found himself in an imperfect split, his muscles screaming and his 'rod and tackle' feeling very uncomfortable in the mushy sand.

" _Huh. So I_ was _right; you_ _ **did**_ _forget about me."_

Naruto gasped as the identity of the speaker hit him. "Kyuubi?!"

" _No silly, it's Naruko, your twin sister! Please leave a message after the tone; beep!"_

"Oh ha fucking ha!" He groused as he carefully pushed himself out of the gunk, feeling his cock slap around wetly. He shivered in disgust. "Seriously though; I wasn't having a fucked up dream?"

" _Hold out your hand and think of the Contract from last night."_

Naruto wasn't sure if he wanted to believe the voice in his head; he did, however, want to figure out if he was dreaming or not so he stretched out his hand and closed his eyes, picturing the aged looking scroll from the night before.

Like magic, he felt something appear in his hand.

He opened his eyes.

"Holy shit…!" He whispered in awe. It was real! Everything from the night was real!

" _Now, you need to finish what you started: mark the scroll with your blood and perform your first summoning."_

"Wait. Why do I need to do that?"

He heard the Kyuubi sigh. _"When you marked it in the seal, you gave the contract a pure sample of your chakra and while that normally would suffice, you humans have never truly mastered the art of summoning using nothing but your chakra. Hence the blood marking which allows the summoner to perform the summon with a sample of their blood standing as a marker for the authenticity of the summoner. That is why randomly slapping your palms on the ground having performed the summoning seals does not produce any results; there is no mark of authenticity."_

"Well, can I at least finish my soak? I'd prefer it if I didn't look like a pervert to whichever summon I'd call in."

" _Well…"_ Naruto swore he could hear the pout in her voice. _"Just hurry up."_

It only took a moment for him to get into the brook again and sink in until only the upper half of his face, nose up, was visible.

'I didn't even think to check on Ero-Sennin…' he thought as he relaxed in the gentle current. 'Ah well, it's not the first time I've gotten myself in over my head… he's probably off somewhere with a girl or two… Pervert…'

‹‹‡››

Jiraiya was most assuredly _**not**_ with 'a girl or two'. In fact, he wasn't even with any human being at that moment.

"This makes no sense. This makes zero sense!" He roared angrily, slamming his fist into the large toadstool that acted as a table between himself and the others he was meeting with. "Even now, years after his death, Minato's name is still here on the scroll! Hell, even Arashi, the first bloody summoner, is still here on the scroll! So how the hell could Naruto's name have disappeared?!"

"We are still trying to figure it out, Jiraiya-boy." Shima tried to pacify the human. "And you said he's still alive?"

"Of course he is! I was right by his bedside to ensure that he wasn't displaying any negative reactions to the salves I rubbed into his skin!"

"Enough with the yelling Jiraiya!" Gamabunta boomed. He was resting on a lower ledge, positioned at such a height that only his eyes could be seen over the edge of the toadstool. "We need to think! Fukasaku-sama, Shima-sama, surely there must be _something_ that could help provide an answer?"

Fukasaku, who had remained quiet through the ruckus at the table finally spoke up. "Jiraiya-boy, you have often extolled the efficiency of Naruto-boy's healing factor; why did you need salves?"

It took a few moments for Jiraiya, who was ust beginning to calm down, to understand the question. "The salves… I applied the salves because, earlier today, during training, he blew past his normal control and pulled on way too much of the Kyuubi's chakra than his limit." _'You should have been there for me! You should have been there to support me! Instead, you were just dallying around writing smut!'_ Jiraiya struggled for a moment to keep a straight face. "I was able to cut him off after a while but the damage to his skin was extensive which was why I applied the salves to speed up his recovery. I had just applied the second dosage when you summoned me."

Upon hearing the explanation, Shima was able to figure out where Pa was heading and she turned to him. "Could it be…?"

The elderly male frowned and shook his head. "I cannot be certain. These are uncharted waters for me."

"Can we get an update here?" Gamabunta boomed.

"Well, Bunta, I believe you understand the mechanics behind the summoning contracts?"

"Yes…?"

"Well, jinchuuriki are often subjected to changes in their chakra signatures over time; the core signature may remain the same but slight changes often occur as a result of the biju they carry." Shima began. "It is why few jinchuuriki ever sign summoning contracts."

"In Naruto's case, the nature of the seal ensures that changes to his signature are minute ad so well spaced that his core signature constantly remains the same." Fukasaku continued. "However, as Jiraiya-boy says that Naruto-boy went beyond his limits, it may be that some of the changes to his signature that he should have experienced and adapted to all happened at once, abruptly changing his chakra signature down to its core. His chakra is still his but it might have changed to such a degree that our scroll may not recognize him as 'Uzumaki Naruto' and has thus removed him from our list."

The whole thing sounded like fantasy to Jiraiya but he knew next to nothing about the deeper mechanics of summoning contracts for the various animal summons and so he decided to wait behind and keep on seeking possible answers.

Not a hundred meters away, the Great Toad Sage reclined on his rocker with a seemingly senile smile on his face.

 _Have any of you considered that his soul might simply have found something better…?_

‹‹‡››

Naruto stared, a tad apprehensively, at his hand as the small puff of smoke drifted away.

The scroll had been marked, the Contract complete, and the little parchment returned to whence it came.

It was time to summon his first Kitsune.

'Wonder who I'll summon first? Probably some muscular blockhead. Though… Kyuubi's really hot… maybe I'll summon one of her retainers? Probably a busty redhead or something… Just hope I don't pull a kid away from their play time all of a sudden…'

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

A blinding flash of light, followed by an explosion of pure white smoke.

"Finally! I'm out of that gods-damned cage! I'm out!"

Naruto's blood turned to ice as he realized that he knew that voice; recognized who it belonged to.

Kyuubi.

He had just turned the _motherfucking_ _ **Kyuubi**_ _loose!_

"You!" Naruto's heart skipped a beat when she turned to him, a crazed glint in her eyes. "You are going to fuck me! Right here, right now!"

Before he could even formulate a word, Kyuubi dived out of the rapidly thinning smoke, giving him a split second view of her luscious body before tackling him onto the ground and ripping his clothes off.

The sex, if it could even be called that, was animalistic; wild, rushed, no thought given to technique. The lewd sounds of their rutting filled the morning air in an ever increasing tempo until, finally, both came.

Kyuubi crashed onto his chest, nuzzling her cheek into his chest while letting out contented purrs. Naruto, for his part, was dazed by the sheer energy with which she had thrown herself at him and was only just recovering.

"What… what was that for?"

Kyuubi smiled as she sat up, his cock plopping onto his stomach as it left her cunt. Her amber eyes were aglow with an emotion he couldn't quite place and her hair tickled his chest. "That, mister jailer, was a 'thank you' for grating me temporary reprieve from my cell. Well, that and a little bit of a celebratory fuck."

"But… I don't understand… How… how are you out here?"

The Kyuubi smiled. "That contract you signed? It grants you the privilege of summoning _any_ kitsune, irrespective of their distance. However, it is also capable of bypassing most restrictions that would prevent other summons' response, case in point-" she tapped the seal on his belly, "this little tattoo."

"But… Ero-Sennin said-"

"Yeah," Kyuubi scowled angrily. "Your seal is a powerful thing. In order to bypass it, the geas placed on the Kitsune Contract basically stripped me to my bare essence and even _then_ I'm still tied to you! I mean look at this!" She tugged at a simple black and gold choker that he only just noticed around her neck.

Naruto laid back and stared past her at the cloudy skies above. If she was not lying then that would imply that her energy reserves were severely depleted and their souls were still entwined; she couldn't kill him even if she tried.

"So… what do you want to do now?"

"Honestly? I just want to relax… I wanna feel the grass between my toes, feel water running over my skin… I want to feel alive again…"

Naruto nodded gently, feeling sympathy for the kitsune who had been enslaved for years… He'd likely have done the same in her shoes after all.

For the next couple of minutes, they just lay there, kitsune above human, basking in the morning sun.

"Why do you protect Konoha?"

The question struck him out of the blue and caught him totally off-guard. "Kyuubi?"

"I don't mean to disrespect your sense of loyalty but… why?" She asked again, sitting up so she could look into his eyes. "They hate you there; for years they tried to kill you and when that didn't work they did their damnedest to break you. Psychological torture, physical torture, isolation, rejection… Whenever you told anyone of your dream, they would shut you down or ridicule you. Even when you were placed on a team, the man they put in charge of your team was a lazy pervert who saw no problem with doing the absolute minimum he could get away with while claiming to train you. When you outperformed people's expectations, he pawned you off onto other people so he could show blatant favoritism to a child who cared little about the sacrifices everyone made for him… The same child that shoved a fist through your chest…

"So… why?"

Naruto sighed. "You wouldn't understand."

Kyuubi reached out ad held his chin, keeping her eyes locked onto his. "We are to be partners, Naruto. Keeping secrets will hurt our partnership."

He slapped his palms over his eyes ad pressed them until they hurt. "Fuck. You're right." He pulled his hands away and used them to support himself as he sat up, Kyuubi adjusting herself so she remained in his lap but with her back to his chest. "Look, I know you'll think it's childish but… I have people I care for in Konoha. Sakura, Iruka-sensei, Baa-chan, Shizune-nee, Teuchi-ojii-san and Ayame-nee… The rest of the Rookie Nine, Kakashi-sensei and Team Gai… Konohamaru and his squirts… I've developed bonds with them, Kyuubi, and they have bonds to Konoha itself so…"

The Queen of Makai stared forward, her eyes unblinking, seeing something that he could not. "You were wrong, Naruto; I do understand. As a child, you were rejected by the Village, unloved and unwanted. By the time you got to the Academy, you wanted to make connections to people at any cost and, over time, you succeeded. So now, you're afraid that if you don't protect _their_ interests, you'll lost the few bonds you have."

"I… yeah, that's about it, I guess."

She leaned back, resting her head in the crook of his shoulder. "I understand, Naruto, but… I don't think it's a good way to live." She squeezed his thigh gently. "Hear me out, first. Please." Slowly, the tension in his muscles disappeared and she took it as her cue. "The thing with that is how toxic it can be to you. You see, Naruto, you're only protecting Konoha because of a few people but how many of them actually care about you? About your dreams? Most of the Rookies ridiculed your dreams, Kakashi never really seemed to care about you and most of the others don't even know about me. At best, I'd say only the Ichirakus, the new Hokage and her assistant and Iruka truly care."

"Then they're worth fighting for."

"I never said they weren't. But think of this; what happens if the Ichirakus decide that Konoha is no longer for them? That they like, say, Kusagakure, and have developed bonds there. That will split your interests, Naruto, and you'll be forced to make a decision that could destroy your relationship with them or with your other friends. And think of this 'Uchiha situation'; you've promised to bring him back because you care for your teammate but what happens when he returns? She'll probably just go back to ignoring you; the precedent's there. Also, what happens if he doesn't _want_ to come back? What if, in the heat of things, you kill him? What then? Won't she hate you?"

The tension returned to Naruto as her words poured out until he slammed a fist into the ground in frustration. "So what am I supposed to do? Raze Konoha to the ground? Ignore my friends? Tell me, o great Queen of Makai, because I don't have a fucking clue!"

Kyuubi reached up to caress his cheek softly. "I haven't asked you to tear down your bonds or destroy Konoha, Naruto, I simply want you to look beyond protecting your friends' interests. I don't want to see you tear yourself apart because their opinions have changed and now clash with each others'. Defend what needs to be defended, Naruto, and only do so because you believe it deserves defending. Do you understand?"

The shinobi frowned and shook his head, prompting Kyuubi to turn to him.

"You will, Naruto… In time, I believe you will…"


	5. Day 1: Chapter 4

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 4**

" _So… what do you want to do now?"_

When Jiraiya returned from Myobokuzan, his mind was clouded by thoughts of changes in chakra core signatures and how to talk to his godson. It, thus, came as a shock to him when he stumbled upon a scene he would never have believed if he had been told.

On the grassy plain bordering the brook lay Naruto.

That, in and of itself was no surprise.

The _**huge**_ surprise was the absolute _beauty_ lying on his chest.

Naruto had a girl? And he had been keeping said girl a secret?!

Unthinkable!

In a flash, Jiraiya activated his invisibility technique and, drawing on every bit of skill that he had acquired, he crept up toward them, stopping when he felt he was within range of their voices.

" _Why do you protect Konoha?"_

The question caught Jiraiya off guard. Why did this mystery woman ask such a question?

" _Kyuubi?"_

If Jiraiya had been eating, he'd have done a spit take. Did Naruto just say _Kyuubi_?! As in the multi-storey, engine of destruction, _**Kyuubi?!**_

That couldn't be.

He could only see a woman on his godson's chest. A remarkably beautiful, completely nude woman but a woman all the same.

There was no sign of even _one_ tail, to say nothing of _**nine**_.

" _They hate you there; for years they tried to kill you and when that didn't work they did their damnedest to break you. Psychological torture, physical torture, isolation, rejection… Whenever you told anyone of your dream, they would shut you down or ridicule you. Even when you were placed on a team, the man they put in charge of your team was a lazy pervert who saw no problem with doing the absolute minimum he could get away with while claiming to train you. When you outperformed people's expectations, he pawned you off onto other people so he could show blatant favoritism to a child who cared little about the sacrifices everyone made for him… The same child that shoved a fist through your chest… So… why?"_

Jiraiya grimaced upon hearing her words. Though he wasn't ready to jump to conclusions and claim that this woman had been the reason for Naruto's outburst the day before, he couldn't deny the fact that, even now, the mere memory of his godson's pained rage still cut him to the bone.

He had failed; failed Minato, failed Kushina but, most of all, he had failed Naruto.

And he had no one to blame but himself.

" _... I've developed bonds with them, Kyuubi, and they have bonds to Konoha itself so…"_

Pride welled up in the old shinobi yet that pride was tempered by worry.

Yes, he was glad that Naruto remained loyal to Konoha but the terms of that loyalty…

What would happen if those he had developed bonds with suddenly chose to desert the Village? What if they chose to destroy Konoha?

" _The thing with that is how toxic it can be to you. You see, Naruto, you're only protecting Konoha because of a few people but how many of them actually care about you?"_

Jiraiya had no idea who this mystery woman was but he found himself liking her, weird nickname aside; she seemed to have a very mature and wise outlook on life and the old shinobi couldn't help but agree with her opinion.

" _So what am I supposed to do? Raze Konoha to the ground? Ignore my friends? Tell me, o great Queen of Makai, because I don't have a fucking clue!"_

Just like that, Jiraiya's mind shorted out.

He could have ignored her otherworldly beauty.

He could have ignored her mature outlook on life.

He could have ignored Naruto calling her 'Kyuubi'.

That title, though?

Never.

As far as he knew, he was the only human that knew anything _about_ Makai.

That Naruto would know it was one thing.

That he would refer to the woman - _the same woman he had called '_ _ **Kyuubi**_ _' no less_ \- by that title?

He needed to talk to the Toads.

" _Defend what needs to be defended, Naruto, and only do so because you believe it deserves defending. Do you understand?"_

As he ran through the handseals that would reverse-summon him to Myobokuzan, he watched as she shifted in his godson's lap and, for a split-second, he could have sworn that her eyes connected with his.

He completed the seals and disappeared, the smoke from the reverse-summoning concealed by his invisibility jutsu.

‹‹‡››

Kyuubi smiled as she felt the intruder's presence fade away. She wasn't absolutely certain but she believed that the 'guest' was Naruto's godfather. If it was then she would likely be having a meeting with him soon.

She licked her lips in anticipation.

Her conversation with him would be… fun.

"So, uh, you said the changes have already begun right?"

The sound of Naruto's voice broke her out of her thoughts and she glanced at him with a slightly perplexed look. "Sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"Oh, um, down at the brook? You said that the changes you promised had begun."

It took a few moments for her to recall but then her eyes lit up in understanding. "Ah, I did say that didn't I? Well, do you remember when I gave you the scroll?"

Naruto nodded, images of white-hot flames raging in his mind.

"Well, that was the first step; the injection of my energy into your circulatory system to jump-start a few things." She shrugged. "You don't realize it but your senses have been enhanced beyond any known comparison."

The blond blinked in surprise. "No way. I mean, everything still feels- **AH!** " The pain was sudden, overwhelming; every cell in his brain seemed to flare as they struggled to deal with a sudden surge of information.

Abruptly, everything returned to normal though his head still throbbed with splitting aches.

"Believe me now?" Kyuubi asked as she gently wiped the tears that freely streamed out of his bloodshot eyes.

"What… was that?!" He gasped.

"I temporarily removed the buffer that I placed around your brain to dampen the effects of your senses suddenly being heightened beyond human limits, even with chakra augmentation." She replied with a shrug. "I felt it would be better than simply telling you about it."

"That… hurt!"

"I know. As it is, however, your brain is adjusting at a greater rate than I anticipated and, within forty-eight hours it should have adapted to the new sensory load allowing me to pull away the buffer." She caught his wince at her statement and she pulled him into a gentle kiss. "It won't hurt you, trust me, and the benefits will far outweigh this little pain you went through just now."

"I'll take your word on it." Naruto sighed. "Any thing else?"

"Well, I'm making all round enhancements to your overall physiology as we speak. The buffer's in place as well but I'll take it down when you go to bed tonight; most of them require a jolt to be activated while the others are more subtle and will take effect by the time you wake up tomorrow."

"Oh… So I guess today's just gonna be for chills?"

"Not yet. I'd like you to try summoning again; let's get you acquainted with some other kitsune eh?"

"Uh… sure." The blond shrugged as she swung off his lap to sit on the grass. "Wait; don't you want to get clothes or something?"

Kyuubi glanced downward and took in the sight of her own nude body, carelessly displayed for the world to see. "Nope."

Naruto shrugged. "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

Unlike the last time he had tried this, he had no mental imagery of who he'd be summoning.

As was consistent with his luck, he just so happened to have summoned a busty redhead.

"To me, Knightwalker! Save me from this foul creature!"

Long, luxuriant red hair flowed down to the small of her back, framing an exquisite heart-shaped face. She was clothed in a sleeveless, purple tunic with openings down the sides that, along with the plunging neckline of the tunic revealed quite a lot of tit-flesh. A wide, indigo obi held the tunic together and put her curves out on display and on her feet were a pair of sandals.

All of the above Naruto only noted in his peripheral vision because his focus was on the triangular spearhead that was on its way to splitting his head open.

‹‹‡››

When Jiraiya returned to Myobokuzan, he expected a number of things: attempts to get him to talk, questions, rude gestures (Gamabunta seemed to have been on a particularly nasty attitude run) and more.

He did _not_ , however, expect the Great Sage himself to have ordered to see him first.

The creaking sound of the Sage's chamber doors was a more effective tool to get him tensed up than having the door slam.

"You wanted to see me, O-gama Sennin-sama?"

"You had a question, did you not?"

Jiraiya's eyes narrowed. "You've Seen this meeting."

"To a degree, Jiraiya, yes," The Sage replied, "however, as with anything to do with the child of prophecy, my sight is limited; in this case I could see this meeting but I never saw beyond this point."

The new information threw Jiraiya for a loop; the Sage's sight couldn't see things pertaining to Naruto? He shook his head. "We will talk about that later, right now I need to know: who is the Queen of Makai?"

The Great Toad Sage sat up in his chair, his eyes, unopened till that moment, now peering into Jiraiya's. "You should have no such knowledge, Jiraiya, yet you do. How?"

The white-haired shinobi grimaced. "She's frolicking with my godson."

‹‹‡››

Time is a funny thing; when one is doing something fun, it tends to speed right by yet, when one needs it to hurry by, time drags its heels, unwilling to leave.

When one is in danger, time seems to dilate; a second becomes an infinitely long period of time and, should one be on the precipice of death, time allows them a final chance to look upon their lives…

Naruto didn't get that chance.

Not because time didn't slow down for him (because it _did_ ) but because, as the spear inched closer and the memories grew clearer, a **jolt** ran through his body.

All of a sudden, limbs that felt too stiff to move were charged by an influx of energy; his mind that was focused on his incoming death now surged with alternate routes and plans to subdue this new foe.

His chakra, once an extremely dense mass of Yang-natured affinity, was now more malleable with the injection of a surge of Yin chakra.

Faster than he had ever reacted in his life, the shinobi tilted his head, allowing the spear to pierce the vacuum that his head once occupied. Minimal thought sent chakra into his feet, pooling there until he let go of it, the ensuing blast sending him flying out of range of the woman's spear.

" _ **Whatever you do, Jiraiya-boy, do NOT provoke her…"**_

The woman was fast, though, and she instantly took off after him, the spearhead shifting form to become wider, its sides curving inward close to where it was mounted upon the shaft.

Naruto kept backpedaling, his mind racing with ways to nullify the woman's advantage with the spear. His eyes widened as a blast of wind raced ahead of the woman, having already shaved the gap between them by half.

" _ **Powerful as you are, just ONE of her guardians will destroy you in combat…"**_

A swift substitution took Naruto into the trees further away from the brook and he immediately summoned half a dozen clones to run interference for him.

He needed his weapons.

" _ **And she easily outclasses all four…"**_

From her spot on the grass, Kyuubi watched as Naruto, aided by his clones, battled against her guardian. The Knightwalker, clothed in her _Robe of Yuen_ was significantly more skilled than the shinobi and, had they fought a mere twenty-four hours ago, the spear-toting woman would have decimated him.

However, his innate combat potential, combined with his crafty nature, his clones and now boosted by the changes she had made to him showed himself a worthy warrior against her guardian.

Every time the Knightwalker had impaled him on the end of her spear, she had grown more and more frustrated as the body disappeared in a puff of smoke. She had switched from the ranged offensive Mel Force gave her to the overwhelming speed of Silfarion to the dual offensive of Blue Crimson yet the shinobi had managed to escape death every single time.

'Not bad, Naruto… With a little help you'll be unstoppable in no-'

SQUELCH!

Kyuubi sat up in a flash and her eyes grew wide in shock.

Amidst the dispelling of other clones she watched as Naruto struggled to breathe, blood running down his chin as he was lifted upon the Knightwalker's spear.

"It's over human!" The redhead roared as she lifted him in an overhead arc and slammed him, neck-first, into the ground.

 **BOOM!**

"Damn! I owe Ero-sensei for teaching me that mud clone technique." Naruto stated as he rose up out of the ground, bits of dirt falling off his clothes. "Did we get her?"

All around the battle site, kunai and shuriken that had been strewn around disappeared in puffs of smoke, replaced by the blond's clones.

"Seems that way bo- Wha-!"

A powerful gust of wind blew the dark smoke around the explosion site apart, revealing the red-haired woman.

She had changed.

Where she had worn the purple tunic of the _Robe of Yuen_ , she was now clad in an armor that the Kyuubi recognized as one of her favorites.

The Flame Empress Armor.

"You have fought well, human." The Knightwalker stated calmly as particles of light began to pool around her new armor. "You will receive a warriors end."

The light flashed once and, when it dimmed, she was once again adorned in new clothing; a cheetah print bikini with similarly designed collar and ear-attachments. Her groin was covered in a simple pair of panties with a strip of clothing down her left leg and a pair of boots stretching up to the middle of her thigh. Her spear had changed as well, returning to the arrow-like spearhead on the ornately designed shaft.

It would have made for a provocative image if she wasn't leaning her weight on her right foot with her spear held ready.

"Prepare yourself!"

That was the last thing Naruto heard.


	6. Day 1: Chapter 5

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 5**

" _Enough."_

The tip of the spear stopped a _millimeter_ away from the bridge of his nose.

The Knightwalker could not believe what she had just heard and the slight vibrations running through the shaft of her spear as she restrained herself were proof of that. "I beg you pardon, my lady?"

"I said enough Erza; as usual you have served me excellently." Kyuubi stated calmly as she walked up to the fighters. "Now put away your blade and let me introduce you to my partner."

"Understood." The redheaded woman's eyes never left Naruto's as she stood at ease, her armor and weapon disappearing in a flash of light. The purple dress returned in place of the old armor and the woman turned to Kyuubi and bowed low. "My lady."

Kyuubi smiled fondly as she spread her arms invitingly. "Come now, Erza, it has been decades since we last saw each other. Don't I deserve a hug?"

Still bowing, the redhead shook her head. "It is unbeco-"

"You have become so stiff again since I left!" Kyuubi laughed as she yanked Erza up and embraced her tightly. "I missed you my dear."

"I… I missed…" Her voice broke as she latched on to her Queen, holding on tight as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I missed you-"

"Hush now, my dear." Kyuubi cut in gently, a joyful smile on her face. "I am here now and I have no intention of leaving you _ever_ again."

Naruto felt squeamish; there was something wrong with seeing the strong redhead who had him on the verge of death mere moments before now baring her soul to the Kyuubi.

He felt like an two had broken the hug now, and Erza was half choking and half laughing as she took in the sight of her Queen. "You're still as shameless as ever Kyuubi-sama."

"If mother nature intended for us to be clothed we'd have fur." Kyuubi shot back with a grin of her own. "And look at you! When did the _Robe_ become your new standard?"

Erza blushed. "Not too long ago, Kyuubi-sama. I mean, I love the _Heart Kreuz_ attire but… I suppose I just grew up."

"Aw… my Erza's becoming a woman!" Kyuubi squealed happily as she embraced the redhead again. "Oh, I can't wait to see how all my favorite girls are doing!" Erza opened her mouth to speak but her Queen shut her up with a gesture. "Now now, Erza, no spoilers; I'd like _them_ to tell me how things have been on their end."

"But… how will they get here Kyuubi-sama?"

"Ah… I haven't introduced him have I?" The Queen smiled as she led her guardian over to Naruto. "Erza, this is Uzumaki Naruto, my host and partner." Turning to the shinobi, she continued, "Naruto, this is Erza Scarlet, often referred to by her nickname 'Titania'. She holds the post of Knightwalker among my Guardians."

"Your 'host', Kyuubi-sama?"

"The humans discovered a way to seal me into themselves." Kyuubi explained. "Having figured that out, it didn't take them much longer to seal the rest of us."

"So the kings and queens of Makai…"

"They're all sealed into humans like Naruto." A look of utter disgust crossed the Queen's face. "And then, having subjected on of their own kind to bearing such power, the humans chose to fear then; to castigate them and reject them, seeing them as tools in their armory; to be remembered when in times of need but forgotten any other time."

"That isn't always the case, though." Naruto cut in, drawing their attention. "I mean, yeah, most people see us jinchuuriki as little more than weapons but a few people see us as humans. At least I know Tsunade-baa-chan, Ero-sennin and Shizune-nee-san know about my status as a jinchuuriki yet they don't see me that way and Temari and Kankuro don't see Gaara that way too."

"I make no claim to understanding your principles, Uzumaki-san, but I have to say that having two or three people support you in the face of perhaps _millions_ of naysayers does not seem like a very good reason to stand against the tide."

"Maybe you need tens of thousands of supporters to stand against the tide, Erza-san, but me?" Naruto glanced at Kyuubi and tightened his fist. "Two or three is more than adequate."

"You made a deal with him, Kyuubi-sama?"

"I did."

"I can see why." Erza nodded as she watched Naruto's departing figure. "His determination is an admirable trait."

"Among others." Kyuubi smiled. "So, what did you think of him during your spar?"

"He is a dangerous opponent. At the beginning of the fight, he seemed frozen in place, ready to be run through by my spear. Then, out of nowhere, he dodges my attacks and repeatedly slips out of positions where I'd thought to have caught him flatfooted. Coupled with his duplicates-"

"Clones."

"Coupled with his clones, he was able to get close enough to hit me and his ability to come up with strategies on the fly allowed him to pull off that final move. Without my _Requip_ and the _Flame Empress Armor_ …"

"He might have won?"

"It is conceivable, Kyuubi-sama."

"And at the end?"

"He was unable to deal with _Silfarion_ 's speed in conjunction with the _Flight Armor._ "

Both Kitsune remained quiet, watching the world around them as the day steadily progressed.

"I need you to train him."

"Kyuubi-sama?"

The Queen turned to her Guardian. "There are forces in this world that seek to capture what they have termed 'biju'."

It didn't take a moment for Erza to understand what her Queen had left unsaid. "The Kings and Queens."

Kyuubi nodded. "Naruto is a target for these forces and, due to the nature of the seal that binds us, his death will result in mine. I need him to survive because I plan on having him find the other Kings and Queens."

"Why?"

"It took all nine of us to open the gates so we could come here. We need to open the gates again."

"The people of Makai will be overjoyed by your return." Erza smiled.

"Of that I have no doubt, Erza." Kyuubi's countenance darkened. "But before that… This world will know carnage."

‹‹‡››

 _ **Nighttime…**_

"You have performed admirably today, Uzumaki-san." Erza stated coolly to the gasping blond. "We will resume your training whenever you wish. I would, however, recommend that you summon me within twenty-four hours; any later and I cannot promise that I will take you seriously."

"Sure… Sure…" Naruto waved her off as he struggled to stabilize his breathing. Three years with the old Perv and he had _never_ felt so worked to the bone! "Thanks again Erza."

"I shall see you as soon as you summon." Turning to her Queen, the Knightwalker bowed courteously. "By your leave, Kyuubi-sama?"

The -still nude- Queen nodded. "Thank you, Erza., that will be all for now. I will see you soon."

With that, the Knightwalker departed in a flash of golden light.

"Is she gone?"

"Yes." Kyuubi was baffled by Naruto's question. Did he not like her guardian? "Why…?"

"Oh nothing… just-" He collapsed onto the grass in a show of exhaustion. "-tired as all get out. You weren't freaking kidding were you?"

Kyuubi arched her eyebrow questioningly.

"Calling her the 'Titania'. Fuck! I've never been run into the round so thoroughly! And as far as she's concerned, today was just a 'test' so she could determine the best fighting style for me!"

"Erza _is_ well known for her stamina…" Kyuubi mused. "Perhaps you should have summoned another of my guardians?" When she saw his look of hope her smile took on a predator-like quality. "Word of warning: one's a sadist, the other's a crazed nymphomaniac and the last… let's not go so far shall we?"

Naruto's gulp seemed to echo through the night. "I'll call Erza, first thing tomorrow."

"I thought you would. Now, time for bed."

His eyes, already half shut from sleep, only barely managed to keep her in focus. "Wh- Wuh bout yuh?"

"I'd like to take the night off, so to speak." Her smile became more peaceful as she turned her gaze upward. "Y'know… Enjoy the night, the cool breeze… the star formations…" She glanced down to see that he had fallen asleep. "Good night Naruto."

With her host now asleep, the Kyuubi walked down to the brook and sat by the bank, her legs playing in the silvery water. After a few minutes, she turned her gaze upward again. "I'm certain the genjutsu has taken, Jiraiya. You can come out now."

"I was right; you did see me this morning." Like a ghost, the old shinobi appeared out of the night and walked over to stand beside her. "How'd you pull that off?"

"Oh please. I'm a mass of chakra given consciousness am I not?" She giggled as though the very _concept_ was a joke. "As such, it _should_ be easy for me to sense when other sources of my very make up are around me."

"Yeah pull the other one." He grumbled. "I think we can both agree that the 'Queen of Makai' is most assuredly _not_ a mass of chakra."

"Oh?" She placed a hand on her ample bosom and glanced coyly at him. "Pray tell then, Master Shinobi, whatever am I?"

"Just what the title implies; a Queen. Of an otherworldly plane, to boot. And like any queen, you've got servants."

"My my, you're quite the knowledgeable one aren't you? And spying on our little training session too?"

"Honey, take it from a spymaster; if the other side knows then you're just a guest observer."

"Ah… wise words."

Neither spoke for a while and the night air was filled with, among other things, the sound of her legs splashing about in the water.

"I'm surprised."

Jiraiya grunted.

"Oh, well, considering your apparent reputation at least in your godson's eye, I expected you to have at least made a comment on my state of… dress."

The old shinobi snorted. "You mean 'undress'. Doesn't matter anyway; you're not my type."

"Ooh, now I'm just _hurt._ What does the Master Shinobi see in me that doesn't match his tastes?" Kyuubi's tone dropped several octaves to a rumbling _purr_ that, in most cases, would have sent his blood boiling. "Blond hair perhaps?"

"Nah, it likely has something to do with the fact that you seem to have an agenda with my godson at the center of things." He shrugged, almost flippant were it not for the steel in his tone. "That a big enough turn off?"

Kyuubi's gaze returned to the sky. "Believe me, Kyuubi, I have no plans involving Naruto."

"Sure, sure, I mean you're not trying to warp his mind or-"

" **As I explained to Naruto before he** _ **willfully**_ **signed my contract-"** For the first time that night, she locked eyes with the shinobi and, for just an instant, Jiraiya felt _true power_. **"I cannot simply** _ **take**_ **control of his mind, no matter what you may think of me."**

"Then his words-"

"They were his, Jiraiya." She frowned and kicked angrily at the water. "By the time he tapped into my chakra, the emotional dam was already broken. Perhaps my chakra gave him the push he needed to say it all at that moment but rest assured he would have done so given time."

Her words staked the Sannin's heart all over again.

And she wasn't quite ready to let him off.

"You have no idea how lucky you have been with that child, Jiraiya, you and Konoha both. You heard me talk to him, heard his response when I so much as _suggested_ that he look at Konoha and build **his own** perception of things…" Her hands fisted in the wet grass, pulling up clumps of soil and leaving shallow trenches. "You have twisted him much more than I ever could; you took a boy filled with hope and optimism and made him so scared of isolation that he gladly throws himself into the fire so he never bears any more rejection. Konoha broke him, Jiraiya, and when you had the chance to help him heal you just broke him even further.

"I don't _want_ to twist his mind, Jiraiya, you've already done a stunning job of that.

"I want to heal him. And giving him the power to achieve his dreams is what's needed then I'll do my damned best to ensure that he gets all the power, training and _everything_ I can throw at him to help him succeed.

"Because Uzumaki Naruto does _not_ deserve to be treated like filth.

"And I won't **stand** for him to be treated as such."

Nothing more was said that night; the only sign that Jiraiya had heard a single word she had uttered was a single tear splashing onto the grass.

That tiny sound birthed a cruel smile in the Queen's heart.

Things were proceeding nicely…

 **Decided to play on a common trope here:**

 **Instead of needlessly bashing Jiraiya, I just had Kyuubi guilt trip his ass into not asking any pesky questions.**

 **Ps: I** _ **loved**_ **making this chapter up. Hope you enjoyed it too!**

 **PPS: More reviews please?**


	7. Day 2: Chapter 6

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 6**

"Morning, kid!" Jiraiya greeted as he walked up from the brook, his morning ablutions completed.

Naruto, in the midst of a rigorous morning work out, paused to smile at the older shinobi. "Hey Ero-Sennin! Missed seeing you yesterday, where were you?"

Jiraiya pondered over the decision to let his apprentice know that _he knew_ but decided against it, at least for the moment. So, he settled for an incomplete truth. "Spent a chunk of the day with the toads; something came up that we needed to resolve."

"Oh. Akatsuki related or…?"

"Mostly 'or'." He grinned at the kid as he shifted the bundle of his dirty clothes over his shoulder. "Lemme know when you're done; I remembered an old wind-style training procedure that I think you should learn."

"Got ya! I'll be quick."

With a final wave, Jiraiya left his godson to his workout while he headed onward to the tent to grab a bite.

The impending conversation wasn't something he was ready to face on an empty stomach.

‹‹‡››

"Before we begin, how far have you gone with the _Kaze no Yaiba_?" Jiraiya asked. It had taken Naruto about twenty minutes to round up his workout but now they stood further up the brook than where the conversation with Kyuubi had taken place the night before.

"Well, I'd have to show you…" Naruto started, drawing his mentor's full attention before striking like a viper, his hand flashing in an arc in front of the older shinobi's face.

Jiraiya's reflexes had kicked in the instant he saw Naruto's hand move from his side and he jerked his head back as Naruto's hand crossed the apex of its arc. Nevertheless, the Sannin felt a drop of blood trickle down his cheek and he lifted a hand to confirm what he felt: a paper thin cut had opened up on his left cheek, just beside his nose. "Excellent work kiddo. And missing my nose just shows how much control you've got over it. Well done."

"Yes! Thanks Ero-Sennin!" Naruto beamed happily, pumping his fist at the praise before settling down again. "So, what's on the programme?"

"This." Jiraiya bent and picked a small, smooth and rounded pebble off the ground. Holding it between his thumb and index fingers for Naruto to see, he channeled a bit of wind-natured chakra out, just enough to give the pebble a greenish glow before, in a motion that was as fast as Naruto's earlier, he flung it across the brook and into one of the trees on the other side.

"Impressive…?" Naruto smiled weakly, trying to feign interest in what seemed, to him, like a kiddies parlour trick.

Jiraiya just laughed at his godson. "It isn't supposed to be impressive kid! It's _supposed_ to look like a trick for civilian kids!" Like a coin being flipped, his demeanour went from being humorous to absolute seriousness. "But I've killed more shinobi with that 'trick' than half of Hoshigakure's Star Ninja."

Naruto's jaw dropped.

"Imagine that you're in a war zone and you've just been hit by a stray kunai in the shoulder. You with me?" Naruto nodded earnestly. "You drop to the ground and play possum and the enemy nin arrogantly swaggers up to you, ready to take your head. He kicks you over and, in a flash, you flick a little rock like that-" he jerked a thumb at the pebble stuck in the tree trunk, "-right into your man's throat. Boom. He's dead.

"Or let's say you're on the hunt and your target has a decent retinue of guards. You're well shielded but they've got a sensor that'll pick up any chakra emission higher than an E-rank technique. You can't close the gap without alerting sentries and a kunai will stick out too much. One of these-" Jiraiya scooped up a handful of pebbles, "-shot at well timed intervals will drop the sentries without alerting the sensor, allowing you to close the gap." The white haired man smirked at the almost rapturous way his apprentice received the handful of rocks. "Never underestimate the value of any trick; given sufficient ingenuity, a childish trick could be the perfect play to outsmart an enemy."

Naruto looked up at his sensei, eyes burning with determination. "Teach me."

"The first step is to let your chakra flow over the rock until it forms a nice coating over the rock." Jiraiya stated, using a rock between his thumb and index fingers as an example. "Then, you add in a little bit more to form an aura around the rock. At this stage, you'll notice that the aura's pretty spherical; that's what you need for now.

"When you've gotten the sphere to about half an inch thick, then comes the shape manipulation; you want it to flatten at the poles -that's where your thumbs are, don't want to accidentally gouge your own fingertips- and bulge at the middle line. After that, all you gotta do's sharpen the bulge; done!" He displayed the quietly humming rock. "Ready to try it out?"

"Aye sir!"

"Then let's get to it!"

For more than an hour, Naruto worked on the skill, trying to emulate what his mentor had done. By the first quarter of the second hour, he was making steady progress at creating the 'bulge'.

It was at this point that Jiraiya decided to speak.

"You were right."

The statement was so far out of left field that Naruto lost focus on his current attempt.

"What?"

"Two days ago, during training." The look of confusion on his features slowly morphed into a blank, unreadable mask.

Jiraiya didn't notice; his eyes were pointed straight at the horizon as he spoke. "You drew on too much of Kyuubi's power and went on a rampage but before that you said some things. Terrible things. Hurtful things."

The white-haired sage turned to stare right into his eyes. "Truthful things."

And, out of nowhere, the sage dropped to his knees and bowed his head to the ground, clasping his hands before him.

"Forgive me. I beg you, Uzumaki Naruto, to forgive an old fool his sins."

‹‹‡››

Within the seal, even the casually lounging Queen was shell shocked.

After their 'heartfelt' little chat the previous night, she had no doubt that the Sannin would talk to his apprentice; perhaps even plead with him.

But this?

This was far beyond her expectations.

The human culture had a multitude of ways to display guilt and beg for forgiveness; of these, the greatest was known as the _dogeza,_ the pose Jiraiya had fallen into: it was the ultimate form of humbling ones' self, ignoring all status and societal trappings and essentially abasing ones' self before another.

It was particularly poignant because Jiraiya was doing it for one who, as far as the society they were in was concerned, amounted to very little.

The person she was understood why.

The Queen she was could not, _would not_ , bring herself to do such.

By the time she returned to watching the feed from Naruto's senses, a second bomb was dropped:

The identity of Naruto's parents.

‹‹‡››

"Let's go again."

Erza arched an eyebrow at Naruto as she watched him stumble to his feet, his shirtless torso a canvas of welts, bruises and cuts that he had accumulated faster than his body could heal. He was staggering, gasping tiredly yet his eyes glowed with the same rage that had suffused his being since he had summoned her four hours ago. "We'll take a break; let your body heal."

"I'm good to go again." He snarled as he whirled on her, actually stunning her with the intensity of his glare.

The shock lasted for that moment only.

"Perhaps you might have misunderstood me, Uzumaki-san." Her words sounded pleasant but her tone was icy cold. "You are a bruised, beaten mess. You _will_ sit your ass down and rest or I will add welts onto the bruises you bear."

"It'll serve my purposes." He shot back, matching her glare every bit with his own.

Then, quite abruptly, he stormed over to the brook.

The change in behaviour was so abrupt that Erza found herself following him; just to check up on him, she told herself.

When she finally caught up with him, her cheeks burned as red as her hair.

' _Do they even get that_ _ **big?!'**_

That was the first thought that slammed into her mind as she stood there, taking in the sight of a nude Naruto washing himself on the bank of the brook. His body glistened in the afternoon light, the rays playing off the water to give him an almost divine look.

Chiseled abs, rock hard biceps, sturdy legs, tight ass and a cock that left the Knightwalker _drooling_ , both orally and down under.

Her focus was broken when she nearly fell, having tripped on something and realizing [much to her own embarrassment] that she had been shambling onwards. When she saw that it was the object of her lust's shirt that had stopped her, a sense of indignation set in and she scooped the dark orange material and bunched it up in her fist.

Naruto's eyes were still closed when he felt something wet slap into his face with the force of a punch.

"Hurry the hell up!"

The indignant cry had him confused [hadn't she been the one to ask him to take a break?] but had Kyuubi rolling around the seal-scape in a laughing fit. Nevertheless, the confusion was swept up I the rage again and he hurried up, eager to get back to venti- training.

"I'm back." He stated, dressed in a spare pair of boxers, though he had again forgone wearing a top. He was surprised, though, to see that Erza had set out a spread containing quite the number of delicacies where they should have been training.

"I took the liberty of summoning my food over, hope you don't mind." The redhead turned to him with a plate in her hand. "As much as I want us to continue, I feel you deserve a bit of fuel before we re-commence. So eat. But don't overburden yourself; we will continue soon."

Apparently his stomach agreed because at that moment, his belly growled in lust.

"Fine." He groused and grabbed a plate to make his selection.

When he was done, he sat back and began to eat.

"So, do you mind explaining why you've been so upset?"

"No."

She tossed a piece of fish into her mouth; savored the taste, then continued. "Is that so? I wouldn't advise that you continue to train angrily; I mean, it seems to have boosted you learning curve -you've learned more in this short period of time than I anticipated- but it's beginning to cloud your judgement; I'm certain that, without Kyuubi-sama inside you, you might have forced me to _beat_ you into resting and that wouldn't have been good for your health."

"I said I'm-" Naruto cut himself off as he realized that she was right; already he was about to yell at her for showing him a bit of concern. He swallowed a morsel of food, remained quiet and then exhaled heavily. "Forgive me, Erza-san, I've been ill-mannered since you arrived."

Erza waved aside the apology. "You haven't told me why."

"That?" Naruto scoffed and waved dismissively. "Oh, I just realized that practically everyone in authority that I thought I could trust has spent the last fifteen plus years lying to me." When he noticed that she was about to speak, he cut her off. "And yes; that _does_ amount to 'the entirety of my life'. Fun story hmm?"

Erza didn't think so.

Over the course of her life, her experiences had taught her to value honesty above nearly every other trait a person could display toward her. The idea that people she had put her trust in, people that she likely respected [if the little she knew about Naruto was correct], the very _idea_ that they could have lied to her for as long as he implied…

"How come?"

"Oh it's a terribly long story, Erza-san. Suffice it to say that between Jiraiya, Tsunade, Kakashi and old man Sarutobi, I could have - **should have** \- known the identity of my parents and lived my life in the confidence that I wasn't some unloved bastard or an unfortunate accident. If they hadn't decided to play 'we know what's best', I could have known that my mother was a respected kunoichi among the shinobi forces, a skilled seal and ninjutsu expert. I could have known - _even if I couldn't say a word about it, I would have had the confidence that comes with knowing!-_ that my dad was the fucking Fourth Hokage. I could have kept an amused smirk when those bastards at the Academy went on about how my parents never gave a fuck about me. Instead, thanks to them, I had to go through life wondering if my parents loved me! Parents who took their time to pick out godparents for me! Parents who -apparently, because I sure as hell just got to know this!- were so happy about my coming that they'd often act like giddy schoolkids in anticipation of me! Parents who-"

The pain, the feeling of betrayal, the sense of loss; all the emotions that he had bottled up all day, dammed by the rage finally burst forth as he pounded his fist against the ground, his eyes squeezed shut, allowing only a few tears to slip out as his body was wracked with shuddering sobs.

Erza shifted uncomfortably as she watched him cry; she wasn't so close to him that she felt comfortable consoling him. Nevertheless, she drew close to him and placed a hand on his shoulder; it was just enough to let him know that she was there without forcing her presence down his throat, so to speak. She was, however, furious. As an orphan herself, she couldn't imagine the pain he had gone through, having not even the slightest inclination as to whether his parents loved him or not and she wanted to tear through those who had caused him such pain.

Her thoughts might have continued down the dark path they were on if she hadn't felt him shift. Her focus ow on him, she saw that he had pulled himself back together and she felt her respect for him rise a few more notches… as well as _other_ feelings that she clamped down on. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah." He sighed, his focus on the hand that had pounded the ground mere moments before, the blood still fresh, though the cuts had healed. "Thank you, Erza; I needed to get that out of my system. Shouldn't have bottled it up."

"It was no trouble, Uzumaki-san." She shrugged; it really wasn't either. "So, what are your plans going forward?"

The way he deflated showed how much the issue bothered him even if he had let the repressed emotions out. "This… this complicates things in so many ways… I mean, Kyuubi was just telling me to try seeing Konoha without my old opinionated ways and here we are, not even twenty-four hours later and this bomb drops.

"I mean, I can forgive Tsunade-baa-chan; she's been out of Konoha since before I was born and she was out on a bit of a bender, what with her own issues and all but Jiraiya? Kakashi? _The Old Man?_ They've been active parts of my life for quite a while and they never said anything; not even a hint of the truth! I've only spent a couple of months with Tsunade and for most of that she was the Hokage of a village fresh out of an invasion attempt so it may have skipped her mind but what was Kakashi's excuse? He was my dad's student yet he basically acted like he had no clue who I was until Team Seven was formed. And Jiraiya and I have been out here, stuck with each other for over two years now!

"But the old man's the worst. I actually _asked him!_ So many times I'd ask and he lied to my face about it, saying that he didn't know!

"I don't know who to trust right now, Erza, and Konoha's looking a lot less friendly.

"I just don't know what to do."

Erza had no words of advice for him. Partly because she was out of her depth there.

But more because she suspected that her Queen had manipulated events to bring her host to this very point…

‹‹‡››

 **This chapter marks the beginning of what I'm calling Day 2; the first five chapters revolved around the Day 1 of Naruto signing the Contract [from midnight when he woke up in the seal to make the deal to the late night meeting between Kyuubi and Jiraiya]**

 **And we [sorta] see Jiraiya confess to his sins of neglect as well as telling Naruto of his heritage. I glossed over the actual convo cause that's been done to death.**

 **Guess we're seeing how Naruto goes from the canon [naive] boy to the darker character we saw in the prologue.**

 **Please review.**

 **Later**


	8. Day 2: Chapter 7

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 7**

"How are you feeling?" Kyuubi asked as soon as she felt her feet touch the Earth. Naruto had just finished his training with Erza and had the Knightwalker return to Makai when he summoned her out of the seal.

It had been a roller coaster of emotions for the Queen since Jiraiya's big reveal; from a deep seated sense of elation at how well her manipulations were taking hold to a sense of pain on that she felt for her host at how the news had almost broken him. It had been a confusing time for her because she simply couldn't understand why she cared so much when her plans were coming together so smoothly.

What she did know, though, was that, in her own odd way, she cared for her host and didn't like seeing him in pain.

"Numb." Naruto replied dully. The outburst of emotion midway between his training had been cathartic to him, helping him release the most bitter feelings of betrayal and pain and preventing them from having time to become something worse. At the same time, ever since that outburst, he had essentially become numb; it was like his emotions had been rubbed raw and he couldn't feel anything anymore.

Numb.

That was the best way to describe the way he felt.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked as she sat beside him and cradled his head to her breasts, once again unconcerned by her nudity.

"What's there to talk about?" He asked morosely. "You were right; I've been looking at Konoha through rose tinted glasses my whole life. Twenty-four hours after I choose to pull the glasses off and the evidence appears except it's been sitting right in front of my nose all this time and I was too blind to see it. I trusted blindly, I allowed people to lead me on like a damned horse with blinkers on and I just kept plodding-"

Kyuubi shut him up the only way she could; she locked lips with him in a searing kiss that temporarily wiped the building rage away from his mind. Then, she kept kissing him until she knew that he had to breathe.

"What…" Naruto's breath came in short gasps as he sucked in air. "What was that for?"

"You were getting angry." She replied quietly. "And while you were most certainly justified to do so, I don't want you getting worked up over something that you can't change a thing about."

"But… that's not fair!" He cried weakly. "It hurts, Kyuubi. Even without knowing his connection to me, I've come to see Jiraiya as my godfather; the old man _was_ my grandfather in all but blood. Ad now I discover that they've been lying to me all my life! At least Jiraiya chose to say something; I might have gone on without _ever knowing_ if he didn't decide to tell me! And I shouldn't get worked up?"

"Yes." She replied almost dispassionately. She tightened her grip around him to prevent him from leaving and stroked his hair as he settled back into her embrace. "I know it doesn't sound right, Naruto, and you're probably wondering if I even have a clue how you're feeling. I'll leave that for you to decide whenever you're feeling calmer. However, if you keep getting worked up over this, you'll be wasting so much time and so much potential thinking over what you can't change. Because you can't change this, Naruto, you can't go back in time to make Jiraiya tell you this at an earlier age nor can you get the Third back to question him on why he chose to keep this a secret from you; he's dead.

"What you _can_ do and what I advise you _to_ do is simple: **move on."** The Queen sighed. "It has already happened; the best you can hope for is that Jiraiya's guilt pushes him to train you to his maximum and I can guarantee that, after his little display of remorse, your sensei is ready to put you through hell to make up for lost time; work's the only way he knows how to get past an issue and this is pretty big. The best you can do there is to accept all that he's throwing your way, absorb it all and ask him why he chose to say nothing for all this time. You'll have to decide if his answer is enough to have you forgive him.

"I can't tell you what Kakashi will or won't do but I will advise you to confront him and give him a clean break; if he gives a damn, he should make the effort from here on out.

"Everyone else is a choice; you have to determine who's worth your time and who isn't."

Naruto scoffed and turned his face into the valley of her cleavage. His voice, when he spoke, was muffled as expected. "You make it sound so easy."

The Queen squirmed a bit at the sensations his presence in her bosom triggered but she forced them down to reply him. "I never said-" She broke off as he moved closer to her, forcing the tingles back to the surface. "I never said it was. The better path-" She broke off again, having to bite her lower lip to restrain herself from moaning. His movements, combined with his increased pheromone production [an unforeseen side effect of her genetic enhancements] were seriously turning her on. "The better path rarely- oh would you stop moving so much!"

Naruto's 'deer in the headlights' look had her inner predator chomping at the bit to have a go at him.

"What?"

"What? _What?_ Your constant movements are turning me on, that's what! Sweet- I'm surprised you haven't caught a whiff of my arousal already!"

"Is that what that was?" He asked sheepishly. "I _did_ get a whiff of it, in fact, I was squirming so much cause I wanted to smell it more."

Her eyes narrowed dangerously. "Is that so?"

Before he got a chance to answer, she leaned back, taking away his 'pillows' and forcing his head to drop straight to the juncture between her thighs. "I've been holding back so you could get used to your new lot in life and you spend the past few minutes _actively_ teasing me? Well, you're going to get to the _source_ of that smell, Uzumaki! Now get licking!"

It took Naruto less than a second to realign his face with her pussy and probably even less to delve in; this close to the source of her scent, he felt a surge of arousal race through his body and he called up every bit of sexual knowledge and experience he had to please her.

From gentle nips around her puffy outer labia to repeated stabs of his tongue into her hole; swirling motions around her clit to wide licks that essentially covered the surface of her cunt from the edge of her asshole to just above her pleasure nub, Naruto employed every skill he had to bring pleasure to the woman beneath him.

He was just in the midst of lightly grazing her clit with his teeth when he felt her grab onto his hair and _yank_ him upward, bringing his face level with hers.

She was a sight to behold; gone was the regal Queen who, even in her nudity maintained a form of grace; in her place was a wild eyed kitsune, her control so far gone that every inhuman feature of hers was on full display- elfin ears, slit pupils, fully extended claws and, most majestic of all, the nine tails in all their glory.

"Get naked." She growled. Then, when he didn't move quickly enough, she followed up with a bark of "Now!"

The moment her command was obeyed, she dove at him, bringing him to the ground in a single motion and staring greedily into his eyes.

"Better get ready."

Naruto didn't get a chance to ask before she plunged down onto his erect cock, groaning as she felt him split her vaginal walls open. A human woman would have been overwhelmed by the pain of having a fourteen inch dick spear right into her cunt and it did indeed hurt. Kyuubi, however, drank in the pain, savoring it as much as she did the pleasure shooting up and down her pussy; it was a drug like no other to her and, like a true addict, a single hit was enough to spur her on to obtaining more of her fix.

She slammed down on him with wild abandon, throwing her hips up and down in a blur of motion that had Naruto gritting his teeth. She threw her head back and laughed raucously; she could tell that he was struggling to hold back, to ride on to her first climax and the thought of that brought a new dimension of pleasure to her.

Naruto's mind was caught up in a whirlwind of sensations: the feeling of her cunt muscles parting around his cock as he thrust into her; the desperate clutching of her pussy as she pulled up; the tingling pain from the slapping of his balls on her asscheeks and the frothing slosh of her juices around his pelvis. He could feel the pressure build in his balls as they pounded each other, his hands gripping onto her hips, fingers digging into her thighs as they rutted wildly. Yet he could sense an underlying tension… beyond simply wanting a good shag, Kyuubi wanted to dominate him… she wanted him to be little more than her subject.

A week ago and he might have accepted it.

Heck, fifteen hours ago, he'd have been okay with it.

Not anymore.

The Uzumaki Naruto that just caved in to other peoples' demands without bothering to look beyond the obvious… that Naruto had died.

His left hand tightened around her waist as he began thrusting with renewed determination, ramming into her as harshly as she slammed down on him. At the same time he reached up to her neck and pulled her down into a kiss, dominating her as surely as she fought, giving her no chance for rest. Every time she tried to up the pace he matched and then surpassed it, her ass glowing red from the force of their furious fucking.

Abruptly, Kyuubi switched gears, going from pushing into his thrusts to a constant gyrating motion, her hips pinning his to the ground as her hips moved in tight circles, working her cunt all around his cock.

The sudden change in pace threw him off and set him on the back foot again as he forced himself to stave off his climax. Kyuubi's devilish grin spoke volumes.

"This won't be like last time." She hissed into his ear as she worked her pussy around his dick, practically sucking him into her cunt. "You can't surprise me."

She was right… to a point.

It wasn't like last time.

Knowing how badly she outclassed him in sheer skill, he went for the next best thing: his left hand moved from her hip to her pussy, frigging her clit wildly and forcing a break in her rhythm. _Then_ he unleashed his endgame; moving his right hand down to take over from the left, he shifted the left behind her and, spending a quick moment to spread her asscheeks, he quickly began to play with her puckered asshole.

It was the perfect play.

If it had been decades since she had last gotten her cut fucked then it had been _ages_ since Kyuubi's ass had received any attention and the intensity of the sensations caught her off guard.

By the time his finger slipped in, her resistance had broken down to the barest minimum and the anal penetration finished her off, setting off an orgasm so powerful that her whole body spasmed violently for more than five minutes.

By the time she returned from her orgasmic high, her mind was as relaxed as her body and she simply sprawled across Naruto's body.

"Hope you're well rested cause this ride isn't over yet."

Naruto kept to his promise; by the time he was done with her two hours later, she was little more than an insensate pile of flesh…

‹‹‡››

 **I am NOT satisfied with this chapter** **'s lemon.**

 **If you think you can help me I will** _ **gladly**_ **accept your offer.**

 **In other words:**

 **Beta Needed!**

 **Must be good at writing tasteful lemons!**

 **PM me!**

 **That is all.**

 **Please review.**


	9. Day 2: Chapter 8

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 8**

"I want to know why."

Jiraiya, seated at the bank of the brook, blinked bloodshot eyes slowly at the question. He had returned about an hour ago, under cover of the starry night and had made his way down here, his mind an unsettled mess of guilt and regret, broken dreams and wasted hope.

His voice, when he spoke, sounded every bit like the toads he summoned. "What?"

Naruto sat beside him, eyes locked onto the dark, twisted, reflection on the surface of the brook, mirroring his sensei. "I've thought it over; the Fourth- my dad- didn't have a choice: with mum weakened by my birth and the subsequent release of Kyuubi, it was unlikely that mom would have had a chance at keeping her sealed. I've only heard stories about him but dad doesn't seem like someone to spare himself and cause pain to someone else so his decision to seal Kyuubi into me and not himself meant that there had to be extenuating circumstances. He chose to sacrifice his own son rather than call someone else to make such a sacrifice and frankly… it's something I'd probably do. So I can understand his choices." The blond's eyes hardened, though Jiraiya didn't notice it. Following their lengthy fuck, Kyuubi had helped him dissect his own feelings about the issue, making him understand that his father had probably been forced to make an unfavorable decision at the worst possible time. It had taken a while for him to accept it but she had been able to wear him down. This conversation, though, was one he _had_ to have. While Kyuubi hated the man, the Queen of Makai respected Namikaze Minato's decision. He had acted as leader would and had put the safety of his people before his own desires. The actions of Sarutobi Hiruzen, however, were unthinkable. The Third Hokage had dropped the ball on his predecessor's final act of heroism, sentencing Naruto to the life of a pariah for something he had no say in. "What I cannot understand is why I had to suffer for a decision I had no say in; why the Third had me live in ignorance for so many years."

The old Hokage may have died but his last loyal student at the time was here and Naruto demanded answers.

Jiraiya winced at the formal way his godson had referred to his sensei; he knew how much the old man loved being referred to as such by Naruto, the man had admitted as much. He couldn't dwell on that, though; selfish as it was, he wanted to do his best to repair the broken bond between himself and his godson and his sentiments about his sensei would have to wait.

"To understand why we kept the truth about your lineage from you, you'd have to truly understand just how powerful your parents were.

"Your mom was an A -bordering on S- rank jonin that specialized in elemental ninjutsu and fuinjutsu; like you she had a huge chakra pool that was further enhanced as a result of her being a jinchuuriki. On her team comprising of herself, Uchiha Mikoto and Nara Yoshino, they were capable of tearing through entire squads of shinobi like they were soggy cardboard.

"Kushina's importance, though, extended beyond her skill on the battlefield; she, like you are now, was one of the last Uzumaki. In fact, she was related to Mito-sama, the wife of the First Hokage."

Naruto's eyes grew stony. "So I belong to a clan."

It wasn't a question, though Jiraiya responded like it was. "Yes. The Uzumaki were one of the most powerful shinobi villages, and though they were never acknowledged as a 'Great Shinobi Village,' they were every bit as deadly as we were. The combination of their powerful vitality, their tremendous chakra reserves and their skill with elemental ninjutsu made them powerful but what truly set them apart was their skill with seals.

"You know how many people think your father and I are such skilled seal masters?"

Naruto nodded once.

"Yeah well your mom outstripped both of us combined. The only aspect Minato was ever better than her in was manipulation of space-time equations, the basic rudiments of the _Hiraishin_ and even then, without Kushina he would never have balanced out so many other aspects of that hack-ability." Jiraiya sighed fondly. "Your mom was special… in fact, you remind me of her; your personality is basically a reprint of hers, down to the vocal tic." Then, his countenance changed, becoming more serious. "But she was a wanted woman; Kiri wanted her head because she had replicated all but their most secret water techniques and had single-handedly trounced two of the Seven Swordsmen. Kumo, bloodline hungry bastards that they were, wanted her as little more than breeding stock; they'd tried once and been thwarted by your dad but they weren't willing to throw in the towel. Kusa and Ame had lost quite a number of jonin to her in single combat so they wanted blood too.

"That's already a decent reason to keep you hidden but when we factor in your dad… Put it this way: your old man is the ONLY known shinobi to have been ranked a double S-ranked 'flee on sight' threat. He humiliated Iwa, outstripped the current Raikage in battle with his speed and devastated Kiri when they made the mistake of wading into battle against Konoha.

"Naruto, your dad's name was one of the biggest reasons why _no one_ wanted retaliation against Konoha in the aftermath of the Third War so when he died… when he died Konoha was vulnerable in a way it hadn't been in generations: the Sannin had practically disbanded, Hatake Sakumo was dead, the Uchiha were beginning to shows signs of unrest… Naruto, Konoha at that point was weak. If any one of our enemies knew, after the rampage of Kyuubi, that the most powerful biju was sealed in a baby… the _son of two of Konoha's most infamous shinobi…_ We couldn't risk that, Sensei and I, so we cooked up an insane plan: myself, Kakashi, Gai and Asuma would draw attention to ourselves, make the world think that one of us had Kyuubi inside of us."

"How?"

"You have to understand, at that point, Kakashi, Asuma and Gai were just hitting their strides as shinobi: Kakashi joined the ANBU but was already a feared S-rank shinobi, Asuma joined the Guardian Ninja and I set rumors through my network that his role as a Guardian was a cover for him to get training from the monks in controlling his new found power, we played Gai off as becoming more eccentric due to the power of the biju in him and I just dropped off the grid while shooting off more rumors that I needed time to acclimate to the powers of the biju. In the meantime, I spent the period throwing the other Villages' information networks into disarray with a host of misinformation and delaying tactics.

"All four of us -five when Kurenai burst onto the scene as a genjutsu mistress whose skills 'surged as a result of the Fox's power'- were able to take the hit as most likely jinchuuriki and by doing so, we protected you when word got out that a child had been used as the new jinchuuriki." The white haired sage scoffed. "I mean, who uses a _baby_ as a jinchuuriki for the goddamned Kyuubi?

"So it worked and, until the Wave mission, we were able to keep it a secret."

"That explains why you've had to be away for so long and why you kept things from everyone else but why keep it from me? And why did I have to suffer in Konoha if you were keeping things confusing to the outside world?"

Jiraiya sighed tiredly. "I don't know how it got out, Naruto; as at the time I got home after Kyuubi's rampage you were still a secret know only by Sensei and the two ANBU with him that night. Fast forward three months and Sensei's implementing the Law to regulate the spread of knowledge of your status as a jinchuuriki."

"The ANBU?" Naruto asked, though he had a suspicion that he knew what had happened to the two, a suspicion that Jiraiya confirmed.

"Presumed dead. They went on separate missions but never returned. Sensei suspects that one of them was a sleeper agent and that, after reporting in, the sleeper was killed and the second guard taken out to cover their tracks."

"You said 'their'; you know who did this?"

"A suspicion we could never verify." Jiraiya corrected, though his tone implied that he believed the suspicion was right. "Sensei was always surprised that Danzo never pushed too hard to have you put into his care."

"Wait." Naruto finally turned to his mentor. "Shimura Danzo? The Elder?"

"Yeah…?"

Naruto returned his gaze to the brook and swore softly. "He spoke to me a number of times; wanted me to 'work with him to make Konoha great again'."

The thought that the leader of ROOT could have gotten his hooks into his godson had Jiraiya's skin crawling. "What… what did you say to him?"

"I told him that I was already working with the Third. He tried a number of times with a number of approaches but he backed off just before I started my second attempt at the Academy." Naruto's eyes narrowed before widening in shock and he colored the air blue with his words. "That fucker ruined my stay at the Academy."

"How sure are you?"

"Her might as well have admitted it." Naruto spat angrily. "The last time we spoke, he wished me luck and asked me to find him _when_ things became too difficult. Not _if,_ _ **when**_!"

"You never told anyone."

Naruto's scoff was cynical beyond his years. "Yeah. I should have told the godfather that wasn't around or the old man who never bothered to have the shops that he pretty much _commanded_ treat me as a regular customer. I should have told my dad's student who I never knew or maybe I should have talked to one of my mom's teammates who never tried to even get their kids to treat me right. _I'm sorry, I_ _ **really should**_ _have talked!_ "

Silence.

"I deserved that."

"Damn right you did."

More silence.

"I don't forgive you."

Jiraiya flinched upon hearing that statement. It was what he feared most, the thought of Naruto hating him for his inactions and neglect but-

"At least, I don't for now. But I also won't hate you."

That brought his thought processes to a screeching halt.

"You did the best you could in a bad situation and, while you screwed up quite a bit with a number of things, this may not have been as bad as it is now if you hadn't been sabotaged.

"So I don't hate you." Naruto sighed as he stood up and walked away. He hadn't gone two feet before he stopped. "You've got a chance to make things right, Sennin-sama…"

He didn't need to complete his sentence; Jiraiya understood perfectly.

 _Don't fuck this up._

‹‹‡››

 **End of Day 2.**

 **Training kicks into high gear going forward and we might be seeing a second Guardian before the Training Trip ends…**

 **Please review guys.**


	10. Training: Chapter 9

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 9**

"Good morning Sennin-sama."

Jiraiya grimaced internally at the mode of address from his godson, knowing that until he somehow showed proof of his new found commitment, the title would remain. He couldn't focus on that, though; a new day had come and it was time to get his apprentice prepared for the coming storm. "Good morning Naruto. Sleep well?"

"No worse than other nights." The blond shrugged. "What's on the agenda for today?"

"Training." The Sage stated shortly. "We've got about six months before we need to get back to Konoha; between now and then, we're going to get you to S-rank status."

"We?"

"There's no need to play coy; I saw you training with the kitsune the other day." Jiraiya replied. "Seeing as how the disappearance of your name from the Toad Summoning Scroll was what caused the disturbance I told you about a while back, I wasn't too surprised to see you training with a new summon."

The answer, while logical, had a few glaring holes to Naruto. "Erza's from Makai and most humans have no knowledge of that plane of existence."  
Jiraiya scoffed. "Kid, I'm the Toad _Sage._ If what I've been told is true -and I have no reason to doubt it- the Toads, along with most summons are fugitives from Makai. I recognized your summon as a Kitsune from descriptions the Toads gave me."

"Oh."

Noting Naruto's sudden reticence to continue the conversation, Jiraiya decided to fish a little. "So, how'd you get the Kitsune summons anyway?"

"Just found the scroll lying about." He lied casually. "So, training?"

"Right." Jiraiya pulled out a series of scrolls from the bag he'd slung over his shoulder and placed them on the floor, choosing to pump Naruto for information later. Preferably _after_ he had gained the boy's trust. "Since you've got… um… Ezra?"

"Erza."

Right. Well, since you've got Erza dealing with your physical training, I'll take on your chakra manipulation training. Everything from chakra control to raw and elemental chakra manipulation; we'll do it all. By the time we return to Konoha, you'll have at least six A-rank and up jutsu for each element. Plus, I plan on getting you to the point where you'll be able to create and stabilize a _rasengan_ within the time it takes you to throw a punch."

"Rasengan again?"

"Imagine getting the drop on your opponent: you've caught him off guard and you're going for a punch. He's a skilled shinobi, though so he recovers quickly and tries to block your punch only for you to create a rasengan and shove it right into his arms."

Naruto froze. Then: "So, what else?"

Jiraiya smirked. "We've got six months eh? Well then, if you impress me within the first two moths, I'll start you up on fuinjutsu. Keep impressing me and by the fourth month I'll teach you the Nidaime's special genjutsu."

"And by the sixth month?"

Jiraiya's demeanor became deadly serious. "Impress me at every level of your training and I'll give you your dad's journal containing every single idea he ever had, including the 'how to' of the Hiraishin."

‹‹‡››

And so it began; every day barring the days they set aside for their travels, Naruto would wake up at four, spend ten minutes clearing his head of any cobwebs leftover from his slumber, and begin a specially designed workout regimen mapped out by Erza and Jiraiya to utilize his superhuman [even for a shinobi] stamina to the maximum. Following the brutal two-hour workout, he would take a thirty minute break to wash off the sweat, rest and refresh himself as his enhanced healing took the sting of the training off. Then, Jiraiya would start the first phase of his combat training: a series of chakra control exercises ranging from Academy level stuff to refined techniques utilized by the ANBU to tricks that Jiraiya had designed himself or learned in his travels. After two hours of this and another thirty minute break, Erza would take over and, for an average of three hours, they would do little more than spar. Finally, the Knightwalker and Jiraiya would sit him down and run him through a multitude of combat scenarios testing his reactions and responses, working him to the bone to defend his choices and prove the value of such decisions. It didn't matter if he took a step that was 'right' as they understood that combat was too fluid to predict and they did not want to force him into a particular mindset, rather it was about knowing whether or not he had thought of every potential consequence of his actions; to see if he had considered all the angles and had taken into consideration the use of his environment.

Then, when the simulation testing was done, they'd continue: another two hours of weapons training with Erza followed by an hour of stealth training and another hour of chakra manipulation training, each with a thirty minute break.

A total of sixteen hours of little more than training.

Many others would have broken.

Naruto flourished.

His chakra, now balanced by the actions of Kyuubi, was much easier to control, though his reserves had doubled, and his control shot up from the level he was at before the training to somewhere around the average level for most chunin within two weeks. It remained there for more than a month, to his annoyance but Jiraiya had simply assured him that, after his boost in skill level, his delay was due to his mind getting accustomed to the new level it was at. True to the Sannin's words, as the months progressed, his control progressed at a slower but much more steady pace.

Control was not the only point of improvement in his chakra training, though: his work with the Sannin at learning to consciously manipulate his own chakra, moulding it and converting it into the various elements, brought steady progress to his chakra manipulation skill. By the end of the first month, he had learned six C-rank and a B-rank jutsu in his native wind element and by the second month, his arsenal had climbed up to include an equal number of C-rank jutsu in each of the major elements and two more B-rank jutsu in the wind element.

His fighting prowess was where the greatest improvement lay, though; his nature as a kine-aesthetic learner meant that Erza's style of teaching him via repeated spars worked excellently for him. Within a week he was correcting the errors in his stances and by the end of the first month, he had all his basics completely polished. By the time she introduced him to the fighting style she chose for him, the _Nagareru Ken_ or the _Flowing Fist_ , he was all too eager to learn and by the end of the second month, he was on his way to mastering the basics of the style.

The third month brought about the introduction of the sealing arts, _fuinjutsu_ and the illusory arts _genjutsu,_ into his training, bringing him to a total of eighteen hours of training.

It was at this time that Kyuubi struck on gold…

‹‹‡››

"Oh gods!" Naruto grunted as he dropped onto the bed beside Kyuubi, gasping tiredly. "Damn it, woman, you nearly killed me!"

Kyuubi hummed absentmindedly as she scraped his cum off her face and savored every moment she spent licking the thick spunk off her fingers. "You haven't visited me for more than a week now, Jailer-kun. Why, if I didn't drag you in here tonight, you might have gone to bed without pleasing me again."

"I'm _tired_!" Naruto threw his hands into the air in exasperation, feeling the muscles in his arms groan in protest now that they were no longer fueled by the lust she seemed to feed into him whenever she was 'in the mood'. "Jiraiya and Erza have me jumping through so many hoops that I'm pretty damned certain that if I hadn't agreed to your deal, I'd be half dead!"

"And I haven't even _begun_ to fulfill the other parts of the deal on my end." Kyuubi mused. When she noticed that he hadn't said anything in response, she peered at his face only to see him staring at her. "You forgot? I promised to teach you ancient forms of chakra manipulation, fighting styles and jutsu that most on this plane would _die_ to learn." Then, she frowned. "As it is, though, I can't see how we can work this out…"

Neither said a word for the next few moments, Naruto still surprised that she had meant to keep to her word and Kyuubi brainstorming on a way to maximize Naruto's learning rate.

All of a sudden, an idea struck her.

Kyuubi shot up like a rocket and turned to him. "Naruto, I need you to listen to me very carefully."

"O…kay?"

"I need you to wake up."

Naruto's confused expression soured instantly. "Aw come on! Isn't it bad enough that I'm spending the night -"

"Listen to me!" She cut in harshly, slipping into her regal mindset. "You **will** wake up **right now** and create a shadow clone. When you're done, have the clone move out of your tent, glance at the night sky and then perform a random action **that you did NOT suggest to the clone,** before dispelling itself. I will let you know what to do next. Now **go.** "

Narutom who had never been subjected to the sheer force of presence of her regal mindset, was caught a bit off guard and he simply nodded before disappearing from his mindscape.

Kyuubi awaited with bated breath until, out of nowhere, a bubble appeared just beyond the seal's barrier.

Inside the bubble, like a movie, she saw a first person view of the clone's actions, from its conception in a burst of smoke to the clone staring at its own feet as it danced a weird jig, all the while complaining about her 'bossy nature'.

Naruto reappeared in the mindscape just as the bubble burst, his eyes wide with realization.

"Holy…"

Her grin was every bit as mischievous as one of his patented 'prankster' grins.

"Happy that I woke you up now?"

‹‹‡››

The revelation the next morning had Jiraiya facepalm so hard that he bore the reddened palm mark for the whole day.

He claimed that it was worth it.

The discovery of the shadow clone's special advantage changed _everything._

Though they started slow, feeding a single shadow clone information in bits [five minutes of reading before dispelling, then ten, then fifteen, thirty, an hour, two, four, six and so forth] before increasing the number of clones, by the end of the third month, Naruto could confidently absorb the information gathered by twenty-four clones over a period of a hundred hours per clone; essentially, he could absorb up to two thousand four hundred hours of information and easily assimilate it into his own memory, his mind almost automatically dumping the redundant information and archiving the rest for easy recollection.

Aided by a constantly evolving shadow clone training regimen, Naruto's mental ability skyrocketed in the fourth month: Jiraiya had him study and complete every exercise in the Academy textbooks then moved him up to the advanced texts, all the way up to the special ANBU texts, Erza brought him various texts on advanced fighting styles, having him study up on them to increase his knowledge of the styles to aid him in combat, Jiraiya poured _every last bit_ of sealing knowledge he had into his apprentice's mind and Kyuubi had him begin to read her archived recollections of various ancient chakra manipulation texts during his free time now that his mind was less strained.

By the fifth month, Naruto's genius was realized: by gaining an understanding of the intrinsic workings of chakra manipulation thanks to Jiraiya and Kyuubi, he was able to almost instinctively understand the mechanics behind various elemental techniques and his skill in the illusory arts was only a few steps behind. His physical combat prowess had grown and, combining his almost insane way of thinking with his fighting style, he was now capable of going up against Erza in combat for over an hour using nothing but his taijutsu without taking any significant hits. He hadn't defeated her yet but even the Knightwalker knew that it was merely a matter of time. His control had also increased to the point where he was capable of utilizing the rasengan as swiftly as Jiraiya wanted and with either hand or both.

The biggest area of improvement, though, was his fuinjustu.

He had torn through everything Jiraiya had put before him in weeks, days in some cases, consumed by a raging desire to connect to the parents he had never gotten the chance to meet; the mother whose clan was famed for their skill in the arts and the father who had mastered a specialized field of the already esoteric sealing arts.

For someone who, at the beginning of the six-month period had essentially never heard of the sealing arts, he had gone from a complete novice to a skilled journeyman, able to replicate any decrypted seal within moments of seeing it and he was on his way to being able to encrypt and decrypt seals in seconds. He hadn't earned his father's journal yet, but he wasn't ready to either; he wanted to understand every last piece of knowledge Jiraiya could offer before moving into the highly specialized realm of space-time equations in sealing matrices.

Sixteen years of his life had passed and Naruto _knew_ that he had only truly begun to learn over the last five months.

It didn't bother him; he was making progress and that was what counted.

‹‹‡››


	11. Training: Chapter 10

**T** **he Contract**

 **Chapter 10**

"He's grown." Erza smiled as she watched Naruto tear through a horde of bandits armed with nothing but a kunai in each hand.

From his spot beneath the shade of a tree, Jiraiya couldn't help but smile as well. Having completed most of the physical aspects of his training, he had, with Erza's agreement, decided to give Naruto the chance to run 'live tests' against bandit camps whenever they ran into them. This was the third such 'test'. "I know right? Hard to believe that just five and a half months ago, he was…" The shinobi trailed off, unable to complete his statement due to the shame that he felt.

Erza, who had spent the past couple of months studying the old man, took the opportunity. "Why was he so… unskilled? I mean, I have seen you put him through his paces and work him to the bone to get him to improve. Under such stress, judging by his progress in the past three months, Naruto-san should have been at this level by the time I first met him."

The question was one that had haunted his dreams for the past five months, leaving him a shivering mess on his mat every night.

Why? Why didn't he train Naruto? Why didn't he push the boy to become the shining legacy his parents wanted? Why give him scraps and leave him to fend for himself?

Jiraiya had been tortured by the ghosts of Minato, Kushina, the Ame orphans… every one that he had lost had broken him as they asked him the same question over and over again.

Why had he abandoned Naruto?

He was still searching for an answer.

Fortunately, he was saved from speaking by the presence of the boy that had become central to his thoughts.

"I'm done!" Naruto grinned as he walked up to him, giving Erza a side hug as he passed her. "Challenge three complete, Sennin-sama."

"Very good kid!" He managed to swallow the hitch in his throat before speaking to his godson. "You're getting better everyday."

"Jiraiya-san is right, Naruto-san." Erza added as she joined them, her preferred clothing rippling in the slight breeze. "Your skill is much greater and you successfully took out sixty five armed bandits in fifteen minutes using nothing but a pair of kunai and your taijutsu. Well done."

The blond smiled at the kitsune in thanks before returning his gaze onto his sensei. "So, what now?"

"Now? We begin to head back." Jiraiya replied before gaining a very lecherous glint in his eyes. "And we get to go through some of the biggest towns around! Oh I can just see it now boy! Pools, hot springs, brothels! PARADISE!"

Naruto dropped his head into his hands as Erza gained a disgusted look on her face and inched away from the madly grinning man.

"Oh gods I thought we were past this." The blond moaned [groaned] tiredly. "Do we have to?"

"Oh hell yeah!"

"... kill me now."

‹‹‡››

"So, Naruto, what do you plan on doing while Jiraiya's away?" Kyuubi asked as she gently ran her hands over his abs.

It had been three hours since they arrived at Yamamoto Gai, the first stop of many that Jiraiya planned on cramming into their return trip. As was to be expected, the old lecher hadn't even spent five minutes in the town before racing off to the nearest hot springs. That he had even waited so long was simply due to the fact that he had to give Naruto directions to the only hotel he claimed to trust in the town.

After checking in to the hotel and getting their rooms, the blond had immediately summoned Kyuubi for a two-hour long romp that they had only just concluded, resulting in Kyuubi resting her head on his chest as they lounged on the bed.

"Honestly?" Naruto shrugged noncommittally. "I'm too tired to really do anything today. Tomorrow? Maybe. I'll figure it out as we go."

"Too much free time?"

"It could be. I mean, the past couple of months I've been on a pretty strict regimen. Now that I've got free time with Jiraiya playing hooky and us being in more populous areas, I'm just willing to laze around a bit." He yawned languidly, as if to punctuate his statement. "Knowing me, though, it won't last beyond tomorrow."

"You got that right." Kyuubi flicked her tongue out, catching his nipple in a quick kiss. "Energizer bunny."

"It's part of the appeal."

"Is it ever." She smirked and reached downward to grab his not-quite flaccid cock. "Between you nigh-infinite stamina and this twelve-inch bitch breaker, I can think of a number of sluts who'd willingly give themselves over to be your cumdumpsters."

"Oh really?" Naruto, thinking she was joking, reached downward and pinched her nipple, making her head jerk upwards and drawing an aroused hiss from her. "Do tell."

"Ah damn that felt nice…" Kyuubi dropped her head back onto his chest and spent a few moments listening to the energetic thumps of his heart hammering against his ribs. Just when he thought she had drifted off, she spoke up. "Well, I can tell you for a fact that my naughty little Knightwalker has been dripping wet every time she's been in your presence over the past month."

Naruto's thought processes came to a grinding halt even as his cock jumped in her hands.

"Oh… looks like someone's got the hots for teacher…"

Naruto felt he was not to be blamed for that primal reaction; Erza was, without an iota of a doubt, one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. In fact, as far as he was concerned, she was tied with Tsunade for the second most beautiful woman ever, her youthful beauty contrasting with Tsunade's slightly more mature beauty.

"You-" He paused, swallowed the lump in his throat, continued; "You can't be serious."

"I'm deadly." She purred as she straddled him, nestling his cock between her ass cheeks, gyrating her hips ever so often to keep him hard. "Why do you think, over the last hundred or so spars, that her clothes have gotten so damaged as to reveal more and more of her skin in the most tantalizing ways?"

Naruto's eyes grew wide; he had wondered why her clothes, which she had told him were uniquely designed to be extra durable, were suddenly being damaged so easily and in such provocative locations. For Kami's sake; she had won a spar when her high kick had revealed her bare crotch to him mere seconds before she connected with his gaping mug.

Kyuubi's laugh [and her ridiculously awesome 'hot-dogging'] brought him back to the present. "Oh boy, you thought it was just a weird coincidence didn't you?"

"Hey! How was I supposed to know? She never cracks even the tiniest smile when we're fighting and she never once seemed overly affectionate-hey!"

Kyuubi simply arched her eyebrow, her finger still extended from having flicked his nose. "I didn't enhance your senses for random funsies, you know? What did you think you were smelling during your spars?"

The blond tried to glare indignantly but the effect was ruined by the hiss of lust that escaped between his teeth. "I thought that was you!"

Kyuubi rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "Sometimes I find myself wondering just how you can be such an intelligent person yet remain so utterly, wonderfully, dense."

"Rejected and isolated orphan here." He slammed his head into the pillow, fighting to stave off the pent up lust she was stroking in him. "Sorry if I don't recognize when a girl's lusting after me."

"In Erza's case I don't think it's lust." She opined, placing a finger on her chin, the perfect image of a person in deep thought… if she wasn't nude and riding a foot long cock. "I mean, I've seen that girl _lust_ , she doesn't keep enough reason to play coy games. Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure she's an even bigger slut than I am when she lusts."

"I'm… pretty sure… that you're wrong."

She froze all movements and glared at him, amber eyes flashing dangerously. _**"Are you calling me a slut, boy?**_ "

"You just said that she's a bigger slut than you." Naruto shrugged casually, taking her ceased motion as an opportunity to get his control back up. "If the shoe fits…"

"I should kill you…" Kyuubi growled, a fingernail growing until it became a pseudo-talon that she slowly dragged down his cheek to rest at his jugular… Only for it to disappear as she patted him on the cheek. "Instead, I think I'll introduce you to someone else. Up!"

The sudden transition caught Naruto off guard as she immediately rolled off him to sit at the foot of the bed, tapping the space by her side impatiently. With a sigh, he dragged himself over to her side, his dick still pulsing.

"Now, I need you to perform a summoning; don't bother about chakra, I'll be supplying that." Kyuubi stated as she placed a palm over his stomach, connecting her to the vast reservoir of her chakra that remained sealed within. "Ready?"

"Let's get this over with." Naruto groused as he tossed the loose end of the bed sheet over his waist to give him a semblance of modesty. Normally, he'd care a bit more but this time? He just wanted to get this over with.

He would look back on this moment and find himself with split feelings; on one hand, he thoroughly enjoyed every moment that followed yet, on the other hand…

He'd wish he hadn't bothered.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"


	12. Training: Chapter 11

_**The Contract**_

 _ **Chapter 11**_

When Mira appeared in the room, she was absolutely livid, ready to tear a new fuck hole into the moron that had somehow summoned her away from her midday meal, never mind the fact that it should have impressed her that some human had successfully summoned her.

All that rage disappeared the instant she caught a whiff of the air around the room into which she had been summoned.

Within a second she had identified and zeroed in on the source of the wonderful scent that pervaded her senses, ignoring everything else, right down to the oddly familiar scent that was intermingled therein.

"Well hello cutie~" She smiled as she got down on all fours and crawled up to the young man. He was one hell of a specimen; a body most incubi would envy, a face carved by the gods and a cock that shot up like a pillar. "Aren't you lucky?"

She didn't bother to listen to his reply as she nuzzled her cheeks into his balls, her hands grabbing onto his shaft and slowly giving him a hand job; her own naturally released pheromones would turn him to little more than silly putty in her hands so she didn't really care what he did as long as she got the shagging she needed.

"Well well, you mustn't have eaten in quite some time for you to ignore me so totally."

Mirajane Strauss froze.

That voice… It wasn't possible…

Slowly, she turned her head in the direction from which the voice had come.

"No way… Kyuubi-sama!"

The cock in her hand was forgotten in an instant as she sprung up to hug her Queen, years of sadness and pain washed away in that moment.

She was here; her Queen, her Master but most of all, her most trusted confidante was actually here!

"You're here! You're actually here! I can't believe it; we searched EVERYWHERE for you, Kyuubi-sama! But I've found you! Gods, I can't wait to tell Erza and the others about this; they'll be insanely happy!"

"It's wonderful to see you again, Mira." Kyuubi said as she rubbed the hair of her babbling guardian. "And I've missed you too."

In the background, Naruto watched the tender scene, noting that Kyuubi's normally sexy smile had become more motherly. 'She really does care for her guardians… probably all her people too…'

After a while of silent tears and quiet murmurs of reassurance, the white haired beauty pulled away from Kyuubi. "Sorry for that, Kyuubi-sama," she sniffled cutely, "it's just been so long."

"Look on the bright side, Mira, I'm here now." Kyuubi smiled and turned to Naruto. "And this young man is the one you should thank."

Mirajane turned to Naruto and her eyes grew comically huge. "Ah! He's the one with the huge cock!"

Naruto, who was getting ready to either greet her or run for cover [considering his experience with Erza], gained a deadpan expression. "Really. That's the first thing you noticed."

"Ah… Sorry…" She smiled sheepishly, her entire body radiating an aura of innocence so potent that he simply couldn't find it in himself to feel even mildly annoyed.

That ended quite abruptly with a flick of the nose from Kyuubi. "None of that aura manipulation, Mira, Naruto's off-limits." Warning delivered, she turned to Naruto again. "Now, this is Mirajane Strauss and she is my Magius."

"Ah, another guardian then?" Naruto smiled as he reached out for a handshake. "Hello, Mirajane-san."

"Hello Naruto-san!" Mira seemed about to jump on him only to freeze and stare at Kyuubi with a pout. "I would greet you but someone says you're off limits."

Naruto blinked owlishly, utterly baffled by her words. "I heard that and I have no idea what you mean."

"Mira here is the Queen of the Succubi, Naruto." Kyuubi explained. "To put it bluntly, succubi feed on sexual energy, draining their victims' life force through the act of sex."

Naruto's jaw clanged off the ground.

He simply couldn't wrap his mind around it; this beauty of a woman, with her snowy hair, icy eyes and out-of-this-world body, fed on the life force of others?!

"Mou, you don't have to make it sound so harsh, Kyuubi-sama…" Mira pouted as she watched the blond try to wrap his mind around the bomb Kyuubi had just dropped. "We can control ourselves. I haven't killed any humans in six months."

Kyuubi simply arched an eyebrow. "And how many humans have you fucked in the last six months?"

Mira twiddled her thumbs nervously, knowing that she'd been caught. "None… But I promise I won't kill Naruto-san; he smells like his cum alone could satisfy me!"

Naruto couldn't help the comically large drop of sweat that beaded at his forehead. "Meeting Erza was so not as awkward as this."

Mirajane's eyes frosted over in a flash and her voice, when she spoke, was just as glacial.

"You've met that sword wielding bitch?"

"She was with a spear back then."

If he could have, Naruto would have sliced his goddamned tongue off.

Kyuubi, who had practically teleported into a corner of the room, sacked her forehead in exasperation even as Mira's rage grew, tiny, scale-like squares covering her skin as an otherworldly wind sent her hair flying upwards.

"That. Utter. Bitch!" She growled as the squares receded, revealing her more demonic features; elfin ears, a thorny headband and a new attire. She was radiating so much power that Naruto could feel the building begin to vibrate. "I can't believe she would- OW!"

The sudden squeak of pain snapped the succubus out of her rage and she stared at Kyuubi, who was now standing before her with her finger outstretched, with watering eyes as her form reverted to human-like form she had first appeared in.

Kyuubi maintained an air of utter boredom as she retracted the hand that had, quite literally, flicked sense back into the Demon. "I can understand that you are eager to show me how much control you have over Alegria but please refrain from activities that bear even the lightest potential of attracting trouble."

"Alright." Mira moaned piteously as she sat back on the bed.

Naruto, who had been awed by the sheer power he could feel radiating off her, gathered his wits about him and asked. "You know, I was going to ask what you bring to the table, you know, as Kyuubi's guardian? Now? Question answered." Mira blushed at the compliment. "Seriously, though, why were you so mad at Erza? I thought all the guardians were friends?"

Mira scoffed as she folded her arms under her pendulous boobs. "What kind of friend hides a good thing from another?"

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

The white haired beauty turned to Naruto. "You've known Erza for how long now?"

With her big blue eyes peering right into his, Naruto missed Kyuubi's warning glare and went ahead to tell the succubus the truth.

"Almost six months!" She seethed, wisps of her power slipping out of her normally ironclad will. "She didn't tell me about you for six months! That does it! You're mine!"

And with that declaration, Mirajane slammed her lips onto his in a furiously aggressive kiss that threatened to drown him in its intensity.

From her spot, Kyuubi dropped her face into her palm before snapping right back up.

A pissed off succubus was not one to be taken lightly and Mira was their Queen.

This would be the perfect time to test Naruto's stamina.

‹‹‡››

"Six hours. He lasted six hours with the two of us." Mira said as she licked the last few globs of cum off her Queen's tits, Naruto's passed out form sprawled over the rest of the bed. "Have we lost our touch?"

Kyuubi snorted then coughed violently, having accidentally snorted up some of the cum on her own face. "Maybe you have, Mira, but I haven't lost a step."

"Oh my, I can see why you chose to make a deal with him, Kyuubi-sama." The white haired succubus giggled as she moved up again, inexorably making her way to her mistress' lips. "That he lasted this long is truly impressive."

"And he's only going to get better with time." Kyuubi smirked when she noticed the baffled look on her guardian's face. "I enhanced his physical attributes after our deal; the more often he performs an act, the greater his stamina becomes."

Mira's jaw slackened as a myriad sexual fantasies rushed through her mind. "My girls would kill to have him; his looks, his stamina, the vitality that they would obtain from merely drinking his cum…"

"You can have him."

"... oh the things we could do with him-" The succubi queen broke off as her mistress' words finally sank in. "I'm sorry, I think my ears are playing tricks on me."

"You heard me right Mirajane; you can have Naruto." Kyuubi rested her head on Naruto's abs, enjoying the gentle warmth and the slight motions of his breathing. "You were looking for a king were you not?"

Mira couldn't respond; since the War, the male members of the Succubi, the Incubus, had been rendered impotent and had slowly died out. Because Succubi could only birth Succubi, finding a man, regardless of his race, to help sire a new generation of Succubi had been of utmost importance; had it not been for her picky nature, she would have chosen any random man.

Now, though, her Queen had provided a solution, one that had already caught her eye with his extraordinarily potent life force.

Kyuubi had just helped her save her people from possible extinction like their male brethren.

"Thank you, Kyuubi-sama, I don't know what I can do to repay you." She said quietly, her head bowed, unable to truly express the depth of her gratitude.

Kyuubi understood perfectly. "You've been a wonderful friend, Mirajane, consider this a reward if you have to, though I would prefer it if you simply thought of this as a gift from a friend." Kyuubi's smile turned mischievous as she sought to break the suddenly sombre mood. "Well… a gift that your friend will be taking back… on occasion of course. After all, succubi aren't the only ones who appreciate a good fuck."

Mira couldn't help but break into giggles as her mistress pushed upwards, her hands moving like seekers to her most ticklish spots. "I… oh gods!… I'll be sure to-mm!- to share whenever necessary-oh!"

"Only when necessary?" Mira shuddered at the seductive grin on Kyuubi's lips even as the Queen's fingers switched targets, now hunting her erogenous zones. "I think I'll have to work on… changing your mind…"

Just as Kyuubi's hands were about to begin massaging Mira's bountiful juggs, the door slammed open.

"Good… morning…"

Jiraiya didn't recall how he ended up with his head stuck in the wall just outside Naruto's room, whether it was via Air Nosebleed or Fly Fem-Fists, but he didn't care.

He had glimpsed into the heavens themselves and for him, that was more than enough.

‹‹‡››

 **Konoha**

"You sent for me, Hokage-sama?"

Tsunade looked up from the report she was going through to see the village's foremost weapon specialist standing before her. "Good afternoon Tenten, how have you been?"

"Fine thank you Hokage-sama."

"Alright then, I have a mission for you." The blonde stated as she pulled out an earmarked folder for the younger kunoichi's perusal.

Tenten was swift at reading and, in fifteen seconds, had pulled up a possible conclusion. "I should be back within a -"

"I don't want you to take him out; I want Naruto to do it."

The bun-haired brunette's head snapped up like a whip, deep brown eyes staring into honey brown ones. "Hokage-sama?"

"You heard me, Tenten." Tsunade steepled her fingers as she leaned back in her chair. "Your mission is to head to the specified location, identify the criminals, meet up with Uzumaki Naruto and then keep the target's associates away while Naruto takes on the target."

Tenten sucked in a deep, calming breath before she spoke up. "Hokage-sama, not to be offensive or to doubt your judgement, I can do this on my own."

"And I do not doubt that for a second." Tsunade agreed. "However, the situation is not quite what it seems." Tsunade paused, mulled over a sudden idea, then pulled over a scrap of paper and grabbed her brush. "My teammate, Jiraiya, will be around when the dust settles; if you complete the mission, give this to him and he'll tell you what you need to know."

Tenten stepped up to the Hokage's desk and collected the flimsy piece of paper. "I'll head out now, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade waved her hand dismissively as she returned her attention to the reports on her desk.

‹‹‡››

 **So, a little snapshot of plot-pushing events here and the introduction of the second guardian; Mirajane!**

 **For those who don't understand why Mira got so pissed and simply jumped Naruto's bones:**

 **She's a succubus, an extremely high level one in fact. This basically means that she can tell certain sexually related details by merely taking a whiff of one's pheromones.**

 **Now, Naruto just shagged Kyuubi for close to an hour and the last few moments before she was summoned, he was being teased by Kyuubi. The room positively reeks of him.**

 **In comes Mira and she can immediately tell that this ain't no ordinary cock. She wants him but Kyuubi blue balls her [is it blue balling if it happens to a girl?], leaving her to take in more and more of Naruto's scent. Then, she hears that Erza has been in the company of such a specimen of maleness for close to six months without telling her which, to Mira, indicates that Erza has been trying to keep him to herself. As a form of vengeance, Mira wants to ride Blondie till all he sees is her.**


	13. Return: Chapter 12

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 12**

"Alright brat, heads up." Jiraiya called out as they walked toward another village. It had been three days since The Vision [as Jiraiya liked to think of it] and they were on the outskirts of another town.

Naruto, who was working on his chakra control by attempting to manipulate chakra strings as the puppeteers of Suna did, looked up. "What's up, Jiraiya-sama?"

Jiraiya gave a little mental cheer at the moniker; though still formal, it was a large step up from the overly formal 'Sennin-sama' that he had been stuck with for over five months and the new title gave him hope that maybe, just _maybe,_ he was heading in the right direction. "The town we're going to, Ikazuchi, isn't gonna be like the last one. My sources told me that an A-rank missing nin has been lurking around with a number of associates; about twenty as at the last count. Now, Konoha has sent in someone to deal with the missing nin but I went over a couple of heads to make a request: _you'll_ be dealing with the threat; the associates will be dealt with by whoever Tsunade sent in."

"O…kay… Um… not to sound lazy or any thing but why not just have whoever Baa-chan sent deal with the problem?"

"First off; there are few ways to say that without sounding lazy and that sure as hell wasn't one of 'em." Jiraiya pointed out before continuing. "As for the second part, well, I called in a favor with Tsunade-"

" _You_ have _favors_ to call in?"

"Ignoring annoying blond sarcasm, I did what I did for you because you need the combat experience." Jiraiya answered.

"Wasn't that the point of all the bandit camp raids?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "On some level, yes. However the main reason Erza and I had you pulling those raids was to get you accustomed to using the skills you'd learned in a fight. It's why we threw in some of those challenges; no ninjutsu, take out the camp without having anyone sound an alarm etcetera.

"Now, though, you're gonna get a taste of what it's like to fight in a high level shinobi fight against a high level opponent." Jiraiya explained. "In terms of sheer combat potential, you're a solid A-rank. However, to break into S-rank status you'll need more than what you've got in your arsenal; you need actual experience fighting in life-or-death battles against A and S-rank threats and since you essentially have _twelve_ S-rank missing nin hunting you down, you need the experience you can get as fast as you can get it."

Naruto mulled it over before nodding. "So, who's the target?"

"You've crossed paths with him, actually. He's a colossal douche…"

‹‹‡››

"... only known as Renga." Tenten muttered as she shimmied into the maroon kimono she had bought earlier in the day. It was quite the revealing outfit with a sleeveless tunic with a plunging neckline and openings on the side that revealed even more skin. It had an eye-catching golden dragon motif that ran from the bottom half of the outfit, circled around the _obi_ and continued up the back of the top until its snout appeared, poking over her right shoulder, a design that she hoped would catch her target's eye; well, _Naruto's_ target. "He's got history with Naruto, having been the leader of the so-called 'Janin' that executed a coup d'etat in the Land of Vegetables. He is a skilled shinobi, potentially a kekkai genkai wielder. Though he is seemingly restricted to a single technique, reports from Uzumaki Naruto show that he is capable of utilizing that single technique to devastating effect, including S-rank level destruction."

She adjusted the kimono to sit well on her shoulders and pulled her hairpins out to let her hair tumble down to rest in the center of her back. "In the two months since his arrival here in Ikazuchi, he has been known to frequent the town's biggest casino, often raking in just enough to make a tidy profit without incurring the overt attention of the house." She applied her make up, opting for more subtle tones than anything overt. "My best bet would be to catch him in the casino tonight, possibly make his acquaintance. Can't rush this, though. He's a cautious guy and the appearance of a beautiful young woman taking a sudden interest in him could rouse suspicion."

She spent a few minutes fitting a pair of innocuous looking bands around her wrists, each band bearing a number of stylized seals that gave her access to a variety of weapons that she could summon in a heartbeat. Then, she leaned on the vanity table as she got into a pair of sturdy kunoichi heels that were durable enough to be worn into combat yet fit the overall image she was going for.

She glanced into the room's full length mirror and tried on a number of smiles and facial expressions before settling for one that she felt was suitably alluring without being excessively flirty.

Cover complete, she sauntered out of the hotel room, heading toward the casino.

She was no longer Tenten, Konoha's weapon mistress.

As far as anyone knew, she was Marikawa Saeko, debutante daughter of a business tycoon from the Land of Bears, and she had stopped over in the town for a quick break before returning home.

That her father, 'Marikawa Takashi', did not exist was a detail only she and the members of Konoha's cryptology division knew about.

‹‹‡››

"My, Naruto-kun, I certainly didn't expect _this_ when you summoned me." Kyuubi murmured as they strolled into the casino. The duo were disguised as they mingled, Naruto appearing as a raven haired, gray eyed aristocrat with slicked back hair in a dapper looking white suit while Kyuubi, hanging off his arm, had deep purple hair with brown eyes, her curvaceous figure switched out for a more lithe form, clothed in a shimmering green evening gown, that did nothing to take away from her innate beauty.

"What, you don't like a nice night out, _Saya?_ " He replied as they made their way over to a blackjack table just as a player stepped away. "Deal me in." He smiled charmingly at the cute redheaded dealer, taking a moment to enjoy her petite form. "Let's begin with, hmm…" He turned from the dealer to 'his fiance' and gently pulled her to stand in front of him. "Saya? What do you think?"

"Um… How about a five hundred for starters?" Kyuubi asked hesitantly, playing her role as the 'casino newbie' perfectly. "Is that okay?"

Naruto laughed as he collected his chips and tossed out the 500. "Let's go for it babe!"

Twenty minutes later, 'Shiro' and his 'fiance' left the table a few hundred ryo richer than when they'd arrived.

Now with a glass of bubbly in hand, they meandered about, seemingly taking in the sights until Naruto lowered his head, presumably to nibble at her earlobe.

"Target's at the roulette table to your ten o'clock."

'Saya' nodded imperceptibly and, after a few more minutes of 'aimless' wandering, they ended up at the table.

They were just about to get close to the action when a brunette in a beautifully designed maroon kimono threw her head back and burst into laughter, swaying about in a manner that showed that she was, quite likely, more than a bit tipsy.

It was as she turned her head to wipe the tears away that Naruto recognized her.

 _Tenten._

‹‹‡››

Tenten leaned her head back, resting against the bathtub as she let herself soak in the bath she had prepared, her mind running over the bits of information she had obtained.

Renga, it seemed, had let go of his old habits and was simply drifting about from place to place, not particularly caring whoever met him. He played games as a way to maintain his upkeep which was why, he claimed, he never bothered to try for large jackpots.

"Heh, what a load of crap." The brunette scoffed as she reached out to grab a loofah. She had watched him very closely that night and had noticed that, though he seemed to be on the up and up, he had a look in his eyes that she recognized: he was hiding something.

"I would give an arm to have Ino here tonight." She mused; the Yamanaka heiress was the only other kunoichi of her age range that she knew who had experience in seduction-type infiltration missions. The blonde did dabble in I&T but she was in her element during infiltration missions like this and her clan techniques made things easier during preliminary questioning. Plus, the younger girl was good company. "Ah well… I'll think of something."

She was just about to get out of the water when she heard an almost imperceptible creak from just outside the bathroom.

A pair of kunai silently appeared in her hands, summoned from her wrist bands, and she did her best to relax, her eyes fixated on the only way into the bathroom.

"Maybe get out into the town a bit more, check out the sights." She continued, sounding as close to relaxed as she could manage with her nerves strung tight. "There's gotta be _something_ I can-"

A quiet knock came from the other side of the door ad her hands gripped the kunai tightly.

When she didn't say a word, the knock came again, a gentle tapping sound.

"Is somebody there?" She asked, modulating her voice so she sounded apprehensive, like she'd expect a civilian to.

"Miss Marikawa? It's a messenger from Konoha. I just left the Toad Sage to come check up on you."

Her eyes widened slightly. The only person she knew who fit the bill of 'leaving the Toad Sage' was undoubtedly Naruto who had gone on a training trip with the Sage.

Pulling herself out of the water, she wrapped a towel around herself and slowly approached the door.

"Why should I trust you?"

"Because we're going after the same thing; an old… acquaintance of mine from the Land of Vegetables."

That was enough for her to open the door, slowly inching it back until she saw his face.

Blond hair? Check. Blue eyes? Check. Whiskers? Three on each cheek.

"I've got a nightie on the bed. Pass it please?"

"Sure." He shuffled over to the bed, grabbed the plain black gown and brought it back. "Here."

"Thanks." 'Crap! I've got no undies!' She thought as she grabbed the cloth, closed the door and got dressed. 'Let's hope Jiraiya's most legendary feature hasn't been passed on.' She opened the door and walked into the room, one hand busy towelling her hair. "I wasn't expecting you here."

"I guessed as much." He replied from where he sat at the coffee table. "I saw you at the casino earlier."

"Really?" She was surprised; he wasn't someone that was easily missed and she had tried to keep track of everyone that had approached the table. "Can't say the same, I'm afraid."

"You were with Renga at the roulette." He smiled and the kunoichi found her breath hitching. That was quite the charming smile from him. "I've gotta say, you seemed quite comfortable with him."

"Oh Renga's a darling!" She gushed. "He's just such an amazing man!" She held up the slightly ditzy smile for a moment longer before bursting into laughter. "I played it up that well?"

"You were good." He laughed along with her. "Not quite falling for him but certainly comfortable enough to have drinks with him outside the casino."

"Okay, I'll have to lay off the casino tomorrow;" She walked to the mini-fridge. "Need a drink?"

"Nah, I'm good."

"Alright then." She walked back to the table and sat to his right. "So, what do you need?"

"Renga. What do you have on him?"

"Beyond the bare basics from your mission way back when? Next to nothing." Tenten answered. "He's been very cautious of his words and has basically avoided any mention of his past beyond how he was once a shinobi."

"Any associates? Jiraiya told me that his contact made about twenty possible associates of Renga's."

Tenten nodded. " _Possible_ associates, yeah. In the week since I arrived, I watched him meet with half a dozen people; four guys, two girls. They mostly seemed like a bunch of random contacts though, certainly not what I'd think of as 'associates'. Well… except one chick."

"They might just be contacts but we've gotta make sure." Naruto rubbed his chin in thought for a few moments before coming to a decision. "Did you catch any names?"

"Did one better; got two names _and_ their locations." The brunette replied with a grin. "The easiest to hit up would be some slimy git called 'Shido'. He's lodged in a low-life motel in the seediest part of town called the 'Scarlet Obi'. Room 89."

"Scarlet Obi, 89. Got it. And the other?"

"This one's gonna be a more challenging affair; she goes by 'King' in public and get this: she arrived in town about two weeks before Renga _and_ rented out a small building."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "She's almost certainly an 'associate'."

"Well, I guess I know what I'll be doing later tonight." Tenten said right before yawning tiredly.

Naruto, though, seemed taken aback. "Wait. What do you mean?"

Tenten glanced at him with a slightly confused look on her face. "Aren't you going to infiltrate the building to know what's going on?"

"I am. So…?"

"So I'm coming with you."

"Um… no you aren't."

The brunette looked at him with an almost deadpan expression. "Please tell me you have a reason for saying that."

"I do; _I'm_ not going in. My clones will be doing the infiltration."

"Your… clones." She folded her hands beneath her breasts, making them seem even more pronounced in her nightie.

"Shadow clones…? Don't you know what they do, what makes them unique?" When she kept staring at him with the deadpan expression, a lightbulb lit up in his head. "Sorry, I tend to forget that I spam a B-rank forbidden jutsu like it's candy or something." He sighed and then gave a short but detailed explanation of the technique.

As he spoke, Tenten's eyes slowly widened in shock. "Holy… Can I learn that?! God, you have no _idea_ how valuable that would be to those of us working the infiltration jobs."

"You'd have to have really large chakra reserves, Tenten." He shrugged helplessly. "Either that or extremely good chakra control so you can split off a portion of your chakra to create the clone without severely draining you. Otherwise, you gotta have large reserves."

"How much chakra are we talking about here?"

Naruto was a bit taken aback. "Are you serious?"

"Hell yeah I am. How much?"

"I uh… I honestly don't know." Naruto admitted freely. "I was born with about the same amount of chakra as the average chunin and have only grown from there. Heck, in the past couple of months my chakra must have doubled again with all the training Jiraiya's put me through."

Tenten's jaw was practically scraping the ground as she tried to comprehend just how much chakra he had. "Holy shit… Anko was right! No wonder you're such a stamina nut!" Her cheeks grew rosy as she recalled some of the _benefits_ of that stamina that the purple haired Tokubetsu jonin had highlighted.

Naruto was also gaping, though for completely unrelated reasons. "Wait! You _know_ Crazy Snake Lady?!"

"Crazy… I should have known that only _you_ could be that suicidal." Tenten laughed as she recalled how Anko had vowed to get him back for the, as she put it, 'stupid, asinine, ass-backwards, idiotic name!' "Any how, of course I know her; she's in charge of training recruits into S&I as well as overseeing our general upkeep."

"S&I?"

"Seduction and Infiltration." She shrugged before gaining a slightly pissed off look. "Or, as the more idiotic assholes like to say, the 'Slut Brigade.'"

To his credit, Naruto didn't even flinch at the news. "Well, they're fucking morons."

The response caught her off guard. "What do you mean?"

"I mean it's idiots like those that think they've got the biggest dicks around and that every girl should bow down to the power of their cocks. Unfortunately, they're _also_ the same idiots that lose all semblance of control at the sight of the first pair of tits, or dicks if they swing that way, that offer themselves up and end up spilling vital intel. Why do they think brothels and bars are some of the best spots to have informants?"

Tenten could help but be impressed. "Well, apart from the part where you imply that some people like guys with a 'pair of dicks-"

"Ergh!" The blonde seemed ready to puke at the mental image she had conjured. " _Not_ what I meant. Besides, who would _go_ for that?"

"Hey, people are into some really out there stuff so no criticisms." She laughed again and found herself wondering how she had become so comfortable around him in such a little amount of time. "Anyway, I gotta agree with you; Anko even used one of the more vocal guys as an example. He was quiet as a mouse after that."

"Now _that_ must have been hilarious."

"I know right? Anko didn't even fuck him; she literally blue-balled him into talking." The weapons mistress snorted. "Though the funniest part by _far_ was watching Ino take notes. I mean, the rest of us were slack jawed and everything, myself included, and Blondie's all up in Anko's face, asking questions and taking notes!"

Naruto's deep laugh sent rumbles zipping up and down her spine. "Now _that_ I'd pay to see!"

"You're not surprised that Ino's in the Slut Brigade?"

The way he tensed so suddenly caused her to wonder whether she had stepped on a landmine. His next words made her wonder whether or not she it was possible to fall in love in less than an hour. "You're a lot of things, Tenten. A skilled warrior, an unparalleled marksman, an intelligent, caring and dedicated woman and above all, an excellent kunoichi." The quiet conviction in his eyes spoke volumes that his words only hinted at. "You are _not_ and never will be, a slut. Please, don't ever see yourself in such a light."

She couldn't speak; couldn't _think._ In the end, all she could do was nod.

It was more than enough for him.

"As for Ino, well, I'm dense not blind." He shrugged as he steered the conversation back. "I could tell that she was gonna be a head turner so it's not surprising that she's chosen a path that makes the most of that beauty."

Silently thanking him for the way he'd steered them past what could have led to an uncomfortable moment, she said, "Okay. I can't quite merge the two; you admit that you're dense-"

"I resent that comment."

"You said it yourself." She fired back mercilessly and, within his mindscape, Kyuubi danced a jig at what she saw as his just desserts. "Anyhow, you're dense yet you could tell that she would be a head turner. Explain."

"Tenten, as an Academy student, I created a B-rank pervert killer jutsu that's got an A-rank version." He answered dryly. "Trust me, even as a kid I knew beauty when I saw it."

"Prove it." She stated. When he seemed confused, she explained, "The pervert killer; I wanna see it."

"Tenten, it was ranked by the Third Hokage; I really don't think you should risk it." He warned. It was pointless, though; she just got even more persistent until he gave up and rose to his feet. "I really hope you're not a closet perv or something."

"I'm in S&I." She deadpanned. "We're _all_ tremendous pervs. Go!"

The blond sighed and slapped his hands together. "Oiroke no jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, the sexy ass blonde known as 'Naruko' appeared.

"Well, what do you think?"

Surprisingly, the kunoichi didn't even seem fazed. In fact, she had an almost clinical look in her eyes. "Not bad but the body language's all wrong." She stood up and walked over. The only time the clinical look vanished was when she touched his breast and he involuntarily shivered. "They're real?"

"In a manner of speaking; the jutsu heightens my sensitivity so…"

"And you did this as a genin?!"

' _To be fair, I think you somehow subconsciously drew on my memories to create this.'_ Kyuubi mused in his mindscape as he shrugged. "Lucky shot?"

Tenten pinched her nose and sighed. "We'll deal with your stupidly absurd transformation later; now, do exactly as I say. Cock your hips just a bit to the left…"

Ten minutes later and a multitudes of embarrassed moans later, the brunette declared her work done.

"Anko might be able to get a bit more in but I'm pretty sure I'd score an eight."

A puff of smoke later and Naruto collapsed into the chair. " **That** was uncomfortable."

Tenten just smirked. "You should have Anko train you in S your first week in and you'd blush every time you saw a girl."

Naruto, recalling some of his recent experiences [especially his latest with the Queen of Makai and the Succubi Queen], couldn't help but smirk just as confidently in return. "I might fare better than you'd think."

"I suppose miracles happen." She drawled lazily. For the next couple of minutes, they simply enjoyed the comfortable silence between them until she spoke. "Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"How powerful are you now?"

The blond, sensing the seriousness in her tone, sat up and focused on her. "Jiraiya says I'm A-rank in terms of combat potential."

She nodded, deep in thought. "I'm a B-rank according to Shikamaru's dad."

"What is it?"

"I don't know, I just…" She sighed and stared him dead in the eye. "Something tells me we're in for one hell of a fight."

 _ **Well, this chapter got away from me pretty quick.**_

 _ **Ah well. I think I enjoyed myself writing this, honestly.**_

 _ **Please people! I need reviews! They tell me if you're enjoying the work.**_

 _ **Pretty please?**_

 _ **Oh! I can't believe I forgot for so long!**_

 _ **I got a beta!**_

 _ **Honestly, I've had a beta for at least three chapters now and I truly apologize to greenhorn123 for not acknowledging his efforts to help me make this better.**_

 _ **People! Say a big thank you to greenhorn123 for me please!**_


	14. Return: Chapter 13

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 13**

"You know, when you said we should hang out, I didn't quite expect this." Tenten smiled, raising her glass to salute her friend. They were seated beneath an awning at an outdoor cafe not too far from the hotel, both in their disguises of 'Saeko' and 'Shiro', their conversation muffled to the outside world by a seal Naruto had activated upon arrival.

Naruto, dressed casually in a pair of khaki shorts and a flower print shirt, returned the salute with his glass before taking a long pull of his drink. "What were you expecting?"

"I dunno… You finding the nearest ramen store and pigging out?" Her smirk was every bit as teasing as the comment, prompting a laugh from him.

"Wow, I must have been really bad if even you heard about it. I mean, we never really ran in the same circles did we?"

"Not really, no." She replied honestly before grinning. "But hey! We're getting to know each other right?"

"Yup." Naruto agreed. "And in that line… why the heck do you like weapons so much?"

Tenten blushed a bit when she heard the question; her teammates had never once bothered to ask _why_ she loved weapons and, until she joined S&I, she couldn't say that she had friends either. "I don't know if you know but I'm an orphan; I never got to know my parents. I hoped and prayed for a family to adopt me back when I was in the orphanage but, after a number of years… I just gave up on being adopted.

"The orphanage had an old man that came in thrice a week; he'd perform tricks with kunai and other weapons and even show off his aim. For us, it was the best thing ever.

"Shortly after I gave up, he took me under his wing, taught me a few tricks for kids. By the time I was eight, he personally enrolled me into the Academy and helped me through. I guess I just fell in love with weapons because of old man Tsunoda."

Naruto was quiet, understanding that she was opening a hidden side of herself to him. Deep inside, he found himself growing ever so enamored of her person and he wondered how he hadn't noticed her before.

"So, Mister 'I'm gonna be the Hokage someday! Believe it!'" The way she'd said it, in a squeaky high pitched tone, sent them both into a fit of giggles, though Naruto found himself dreading the coming question. "How'd you get there?"

There it was; the dreaded question that he had done his absolute best to never answer.

He was tempted to lie, to say something witty and gently twist his way out of the question but he could sense that, in doing so, he would ultimately break whatever connection he had built with the weapons mistress.

"I'm an orphan too, though I uh…" He chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head before soldiering on. "I didn't really have anyone who even _liked_ me, to say nothing of having friends except the Third and the Ichirakus so I never really dreamed of being adopted. I guess, as a kid, seeing everyone defer to the Third, watching them stumble over themselves to please him, even if it meant not ignoring me for a few hours… I wanted that." He admitted as he broke eye contact with her, once again forced to face another aspect of himself that wasn't real. "I wanted the people who hated me to have to defer to me, to have to _acknowledge_ me so I decided that I'd be the best Hokage to have graced the seat.

"It wasn't because I cared about the village, no matter how much I'd often say that. It was a selfish desire, born out of a little kid's loneliness and desperate hopes; I wanted to be acknowledged as a person, someone important, not a shoebox." He concluded with a sad smile as stared at the table, unwilling to look up, to see judgement in her eyes if she even wanted to make eye contact anymore.

His hands, clenched together tightly as though in prayer, tapped against the table insistently until he felt soft skin come into contact with them.

"Naruto." He tried his best to ignore the voice, to shy away from the recrimination he'd definitely see in them but, as a sailor trapped by a siren's song, so too did his head move, drawing his vision from the motifs on the table cloth to the depths of her eyes.

For the first time since he'd gazed upon the Kyuubi's human form, he was stunned into silence.

Warmth. Understanding. Acceptance.

The intensity of the emotions pouring out of her eyes was almost too much for him to bear yet he couldn't look away from her eyes, afraid that all that he saw within would be lost forever.

From the moment he had left her in the wee hours of the morning to the minutes before she had met him for lunch, Tenten had been locked in a war with herself, trying almost desperately to prove that she had _not_ fallen for the blond.

Now, however, staring into his cerulean eyes, seeing the almost childlike vulnerability in him in stark contrast to the image of absolute masculinity he had portrayed from the night before, she knew that she had lost.

She was no longer falling; she had hit rock bottom.

"Naruto, that little kid's hopes? His loneliness? They may seem selfish now but back then, they were real. And you know what? It's okay to have felt like that; those feelings, they're all part of being human." She said softly, rubbing her thumb on the back of his hand. "And I know that, right now, you're looking back, seeing them as selfish desires and are afraid but between what I've heard about you, what I've seen and now experienced about you? You're not selfish, Uzumaki Naruto; you're brave and kind, you inspire people to press onward… you do what's right, Naruto. Regardless of the circumstances around you, you do what is right and while things might seem a little, or maybe even a _lot_ , fucked up right now, I have the utmost faith in you that you'll do what's right."

Naruto was _beyond_ touched.

Never in his life had someone looked him right in the eye and restored his belief in himself by believing so resolutely in him.

Deep inside him, Kyuubi watched the scene quietly, her mind whirling at supersonic speeds, trying to figure out what to do with this new… variable.

"Thank you, Tenten." He said, his voice so quiet that, had her focus not been entirely on him, she would have missed it. "For believing in me."

' _I'm sorry to interrupt, Naruto,'_ Kyuubi interrupted, not quite as contritely as her words conveyed, _'but something about her last statement raised a red flag.'_

'What do you mean Kyuubi?'

Seeing the opportunity, the kitsune immediately reminded him of her words and the specific word she had emphasized.

"How… how'd you know?"

Tenten looked confused.

"About… about Kyuubi?"

Comprehension dawned in her eyes and she suddenly seemed a bit sheepish. "Um, well, I guess you could blame Ino for it, though she's just one in a really long chain."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, sometime ago, after a mission, Ino and I went on a girls night out. Along the way, Ino drank a bit too much and… well, she lost most of her inhibitions and, as we staggered home, she caught a glimpse of herself and sort of… well, she broke down. Right there in the middle of the street, she started crying and she seemed to want to hurt herself."

Naruto, hearing this, looked worried. "What happened?"

"I got her home, got her to dial back the tears a bit and then she started telling me things." She said softly, looking into his eyes. "She was crying because she felt guilty. She said that looking into the glass, seeing her hair, it sort of reminded her of you and how much you'd been through and how she had contributed to the things you had to deal with. I didn't understand it at first but… well, she asked me if I knew what a jinchuuriki was."

His eyes widened. If _Ino_ had asked that question then…

"She knew what it meant, Naruto, and she told me about it… about you." Tenten continued. "It was the first time she had ever spoken about you in our almost two years of working together in S&I."

"How… how did she know?" It made no sense; _he_ hadn't known until after his graduation and he was certain that none of his classmates knew either. So how did _Ino_ figure it out?

"I… she begged me not to tell anyone, Naruto." Tenten pleaded. "I don't… I've already betrayed her trust enough as it is, telling you about that night; please don't make me go any further."

Another person might have pushed; most shinobi certainly _**would**_ have pushed, but Naruto understood, probably more than anyone else, the weight of one's words, one's promise.

Forcing her to continue would have been hypocritical of him.

"Can… can you set up a meeting between Ino and I when we get back?" He asked, "I'd like to talk to her, know how she knows."

"I'll do it the moment we get back." She promised.

"Thank-" Naruto froze mid-way as a deluge of information was assimilated into his mind.

A second later, a look of cold fury descended on his face and he turned to her. "We need to move. Now."


	15. Return: Chapter 14

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 14**

Crouching on a tree, hidden by the abundance of leaves on it and the darkness of the night, Naruto and Tenten watched King's building.

Tenten had picked out the spot on during reconnaissance for it's height and distance from the target.

"And you're sure of what your clones sent?" She whispered, eyes locked on the building.

"Dead certain." Naruto replied, scanning the building with a pair of binoculars. "Renga's been playing a part all this time, acting like some stray while King's been manipulating the town government through a guy called Shibasaki. They're making their move on the administration tonight with the aim of installing Shiba as the new ruler."

It sounded like a decent plan to her but Tenten noted a few holes. "What's so important about this little crossroads town and how do they plan on spinning this?"

"First off, Renga's discovered a veritable _mine_ of untapped Grade-A chakra metal ore." Naruto replied. "If he plays his cards right, and Renga's no fool, he could become a primary black market supplier of CM ore. Heck, he might be able to lure or kidnap a few high-end blacksmiths to refine the ore, work it into usable forms-"

"And triple his profits."

"Exactly. Meanwhile, by blatantly admitting that he was a shinobi, he's created enough of a backstory to ensure his story gels; he's got another A-rank guy trapped in the house who he's going to use as his fall guy."

She grasped his meaning immediately. "He'll be seen as a saint."

"Yeah. And with the couple hundred bandits he's hired to raid the town, he's really pushing to have this place molded in his image."

"Well, what's the plan?"

"Let's get back to base first; I've got the beginnings of a plan but I'll need to summon reinforcements."

"We're gonna fight with the Toads?"

"Not quite." He replied cryptically.

‹‹‡››

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

A large cloud of smoke exploded out from the point of contact between his hands and the ground.

When it dispersed, Tenten's jaw clanged off the ground.

Naruto, on the other hand, seemed pissed. "And what, if I may ask, am I seeing here ladies?"

Erza, death-glare locked onto Mira's crystal blue eyes, unwound most of her fingers from the shaft of her spear, her vulpine features disappearing as she silently cast the kitsune disguise spell and stepped away from her opponent.

Likewise, Mira's skin was covered in a multitude of tiny squares as her clothing returned to the normal purple pants with one leg shorn off mid-thigh and her skintight pink blouse, her hair dropping down to trail all the way to her back.

"It was just a friendly spar, Naruto-san." Erza stated calmly as the Ten Commandments spear was requipped into her arsenal.

"Erza's right, Naruto- _kun_." The way she dragged out the affectionate suffix to his name was a subtle dig at the Knightwalker and Naruto knew it.

"Oh really?" He sounded quite relaxed, seemingly taking their words at face value until… "A spar that had you, Erza, go up to your sixth tail? A spar that had Mira donning Halphas? Must have been quite the fight."

"Naruto-san-"

"Naruto-kun-"

"We will talk about this _later._ " He used every bit of skill Kyuubi had ground into him about using his force of presence to his advantage and both of the Queen's guardians couldn't help but remain quiet upon sensing the sheer aura of dominance that he exuded.

Mira nearly creamed her pants as she thought of how such _dominance_ could translate into sex.

Erza _did_ cream her pants, her mind bombarded with a flurry of images involving Naruto defeating her in battle and then just _taking_ her, right there on the battlefield.

Tenten seemed too focused on the two goddesses before her to really register anything else until the blond shinobi finally addressed her directly.

"Tenten, these are my friends, Erza Scarlet and Mirajane Strauss." He explained to the brunette. "They're just two of the summons I can access due to my new contract."

"Oh…"

"Erza's the redhead; a close ranged combatant who's extremely skilled at it, especially when she brings her weapons out."

"Um…"

"Mirajane, Mira for short, is the white haired lady; she's versatile enough to fight at any range." When he saw the glazed look in her eyes, he shook her shoulder and frowned. "Tenten? Did you get that?"

Finally, the weapons mistress regained clarity of mind and shook her head. "Sorry but… you're gonna have to run that by me again."

‹‹‡››

For the entirety of the journey from Naruto's hotel room to King's residence, Tenten's mind was solely occupied by the explanation she had received about the women who escorted them to the building.

Summoning contracts and the creatures under said contracts were, as far as she knew, _animals_! Who'd ever heard of 'Kitsune' contracts that allowed the summoner to summon incredibly beautiful women to aid them in battle?! It made no sense!

Yet, she had not only seen the two, she had felt the pressure of their power in the few moments that they had remained locked in the motions of their fight and knew that she stood an infinitesimally small chance of defeating either one in an all out fight. If Naruto hadn't activated seals that kept surges of chakra limited to his room she believed that Renga might have sensed them.

Those two… they were warriors.

And they were in love with Naruto.

Oh, it wasn't branded on their heads or anything obvious but, to someone that had trained under Mitarashi Anko, their body language spoke _volumes._

From the slight pressing together of Erza's thighs when Naruto had briefly unleashed his aura of dominance to the way Mirajane had emphasized the suffix she added to his name and the little smirk she sent to her redheaded partner; from the way Mira's eyes shone whenever his eyes focused on her to the way Erza seemed to subconsciously relax whenever Naruto walked by…

Their body language was blatant.

They were just as head over heels in love with him as she was but they held every possible advantage; while she knew she was more of a plain girl when compared to people like Ino, Hinata and Anko, these two women wielded an exotic beauty that blew even _those_ sexbombs out of the water. Where Tenten admitted that she would never be the powerhouse that Temari, Sakura or the Godaime Hokage were, Erza and Mira seemed like the types that would gladly jump into battle with any S-ranked shinobi _and_ stand a very good chance of coming out on top.

Simply put, they outstripped her in every way.

"We're here." Naruto's voice snapped her out of her spiraling thoughts as they landed in a copse of trees not twenty feet away from the building. "Mira, find Shibasaki and take him down hard but leave him alive and able to talk; we'll need his testimony if Renga pushes me to kill him."

"Understood." The white haired succubus nodded once, dropping any form of playfulness now that she was in mission mode.

"Erza, you have the bandits; there are a couple hundred of them headed toward the city; do with them as you see fit.

"Tenten, you and I are heading into the building; I'll head upstairs and engage Renga, you find King. Go for blood; if you can avoid killing her then do so otherwise drop her."

"Got it."

"Let's move."

‹‹‡››

Pacing in front of the windowsill overlooking the town, Renga paused as his associate walked into the room. "How much time before Shibasaki makes his move?"

"What, no greeting?" King smirked as she cocked an eyebrow at the last of the Janin. "Must be a tough night."

"Not tonight, King." He frowned as he turned to look outside the window. "Not tonight."

The purple haired woman's smirk turned into a frown as well. She had known and worked with Renga for over two years now, pulling off a number of scams, taking out bounties together and building up toward this moment. When they succeeded -not _if_ , as far as she was concerned- they would have the power to turn this dump into their own paradise as they rose to prominence in the Elemental Nations' criminal underground.

They had planned for as many possible outcomes as possible and she had seen Renga's mind at work; she knew that their contingencies would hold.

So why…

"My gut tells me that a ill wind just blew into the village." He replied quietly. "And you know what they say about those kinds of wind."

Right then, like clockwork, a brightly glowing Rasengan burst into life almost immediately slammed into him, grinding into his abdomen before hurling him out of the room.

At the same time, a second disguised clone exploded into existence, planting a boot in the center of King's shoulder blades, launching her out of the room through the window before it dispelled itself.

The fight was on.

‹‹‡››

 **OUTSIDE**

The instant his clone unleashed its attack on Renga, Naruto went on the offensive, leaping into the air and pulling off a series of combos that would have crippled any opponent before ending with a brutal axe-kick that sent him straight into the ground.

"Tch. Damn fucking A-rank bastard." He hissed as he landed, shaking his fists. He had felt every hit connect with a solid, cold surface, almost certainly the ice disks the man was famed for. "Ya couldn't just make things easy for me could ya?" He snarked as he watched Renga get to his feet, catching a glint of moonlight off one of the ice disks.

"Now where's the fun in that, hmm?" The Janin ran a hand through his hair as he stared at the blond. "Yeah… I've definitely got a bone to pick with you… Uzumaki."

"So you remember me?"

"Kid busts up your well laid out plan to take over a country… You don't forget stuff like that." Renga growled. "I really hope stealth attacks aren't your only skill."

"Try me." Naruto fired back as he shot forward, flying through handseals as he went. "Raiton: Jibashi!"

A bolt of blindingly bright lightning shot out of his mouth and, an instant later, he vanished in a burst of speed, appearing behind the Janin with his kunai ready to cut him down…

Only to have to pull off a substitution as the very technique he had used came flying at him.

Naruto frowned as he landed on the roof of the building. 'That's new. Wonder how he did that?'

He wasn't granted much reprieve, though, as the telltale glint of moonlight alerted him to an incoming trio of ice disks that he just barely managed to duck beneath. The instant he felt them zoom over his head, the blond pulled off another substitution, this time reappearing in the tree beside the house an instant before the ice disks sheared through the branch he had left behind.

"You're quick on your feet kid, I'll give you that." Renga smirked as he created nine more ice disks, bringing his total up to an even dozen. "But now that you know that I can block off those annoying little glowing balls of yours and can redirect your techniques… How do you plan on defeating me?"

"I'll figure something out." Naruto replied, dropping out of the trees seconds before a trio of disks shredded the leaves off the tree. "Katon: Hosenka!"

The retaliatory jutsu flew at the missing nin from all angles yet, once again, they were redirected at Naruto's swiftly moving figure.

'He redirected the closest fireballs while letting the others fly past; that means it isn't an auto defense like Gaara's _and_ that those disks somehow nullify the elemental advantage of fire. At the same time, he didn't redirect the clone's rasengan earlier. Fact? Or luck of the draw? Let's test that.'

With his next course of action decided, Naruto utilized the shunshin to appear behind Renga in a sudden burst of motion, Rasengan already formed in his hand as he tried to ram it into the missing nin's head.

For the second time that night, Renga intercepted the attack, the ball of chakra grinding away at his ice disk before exploding.

'So he _can't_ redirect the Rasengan.' Naruto observed as he landed in a crouch, watching Renga skid to a stop. 'That's good but the question is; why? Dammit Jiraiya, you just _had_ to make this a no-clone challenge!'

"I thought I told you that you couldn't hit me boy?" Renga smirked as he straightened himself, all twelve ice disks once again orbiting him. "You're too quick for me to hit and I'm too skilled for you to hit. What say you that we just let this go; I stay out of your way, you stay out of mine, hmm?"

"Only if you promise to leave this town be, Renga." Naruto rejoined, preparing yet another technique. "Otherwise I can't promise anything."

"I'm afraid that won't work, kid! Invested too much in this here town!"

A second later, six disks flew at Naruto, each homing in on his location. Unlike the others that simply zipped past him, these seemed to have minds of their own, constantly harrying him in ever increasingly complex patterns that required every bit of his skill to dodge.

Then, he switched tactics, ready to try something new. Channeling wind chakra to his fingertips, he waited until the disks came close before lashing out, unleashing arcs of razor-thin winds that sliced the disks in half, giving him just the slightest respite. He instantly substituted himself with a pane of glass lying around as he prepared a new sealing sequence. 'Cutting winds work huh? Well, let's try this!' "Futon: Kazekiri!"

The technique released a trio of sharpened wind blades; the first two sliced through the pair of disks zipping at him before dissipating and leaving the last heading right for Renga.

Having observed what the blond had done to his ice disks up close, the missing nin was wary of the green-tinged arc flying toward him and he instantly hopped atop one of the disks orbiting him and took to the skies. As soon as he saw that the blades of wind had dispersed, he went on the offensive, creating a veritable cloud of ice disks which he unleashed on the blond.

Not to be out done, Naruto blitzed through another sequence of handseals and unleashed another technique. "Futon: Kazegiri Rendan!"

The storm of ice disks met a barrage of wind blades mid air, resulting in a maelstrom of flying ice shards.

Naruto, though, wasn't there to witness the carnage; instead, he had sunk into the ground using the Hiding like a mole technique, circled around and, bringing to bear every bit of speed he had gained in the past six months, he dived out, his right hand held to his left side in a traditional samurai stance as he rose.

Renga, true to form, felt the spike of killing intent from beneath him and instantly summoned more ice disks that spun beneath him in a blur, acting as a barrier.

He never stood a chance.

With an almost inaudible grunt of effort, Naruto pulled his arm out in an arc similar to that of samurai utilizing the infamous Iaido style, unleashing an almost invisible arc of incredibly keen wind that flashed across the distance in a split second.

The blond dropped lightly to the ground and ran under the awning of the house.

Moments later, a deadly hail of razor thin ice crystals fell from the sky, a few streaked with the blood of their creator.

A few seconds after, the perfectly bisected halves of Renga's body thudded onto the ground.

‹‹‡››

 ***** - _ **Think Barmaid!Elizabeth's outfit in Seven Deadly Sins.**_

 _ **Alright, with this we have a few more points to hit and we'll be back in Konoha.**_

 _ **Frankly, I'm a bit bothered by how flat this fight scene fell; I dunno, it just seems that way to me.**_

 _ **I wanted to show that Naruto has grown in his fighting skills and I didn't want to create a new villain but then I realized that Renga's pretty dangerous, especially at night so I kept on having to change things.**_

 _ **The last move Naruto used was a basic Wind Blade (Kaze no Yaiba) but one enhanced by an infusion of Kyuubi's chakra. Where the regular techniques cut through the disks but lacked sufficient power to do more, the enhanced version… you saw [read] what it did.**_

 _ **Now, I'm hearing interest in Naruto banging Ino; while that can be arranged, Tenten's gonna be his main human babe. I love that girl way too much to have her take a backseat to the typical Naruto girls [save maybe Anko or Mei].**_

 _ **Also: while the members of the Harem (human/otherwise) have not been decided, I might as well get this out of the way:**_

 _ **NO. HINATA.**_

 _ **FUCK NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT. NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN.**_

 _ **Apart from my personal hatred for her character [yes, I hate hinata. Bite me.], her b.s 'stuttering, blushing bride' character will not mesh at all with the rest of the girls Naruto will be getting with. I'd have to give her a shitty character boost that'll come shit out of nowhere and that's not happening. Plus, I can't see the Kyuubi I've created even remotely liking her and I haven't gone into the other girls.**_

 _ **So, again, NO HINATA!**_

 _ **Regarding the harem, the only certified characters are the following:**_

 _ **Non-Human Human**_

 _ **Kyuubi (true name unrevealed) Tenten**_

 _ **Erza Scarlet**_

 _ **Mirajane Strauss.**_

 _ **On the human side, Ino's looking like a strong contender (and she**_ **is** _ **hot as all fuck) but there are so many out there to choose from.**_

 _ **Let me know your preferences via reviews [PLEASE! THREE SUGGESTIONS ONLY!]. I'm sure I'll be swamped with all the girls in the series at the end of the day but with this limitation, if you have an account, we can discuss the potential of your choices via PM.**_

 _ **Depending your response, I might put up a poll going forward.**_

 _ **Please Read and Review.**_


	16. Return: Chapter 15

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 15**

"Well, you guys worked things out pretty quickly." Jiraiya commented as he absentmindedly eyed a mature beauty as she walked by, her hips rolling gently. "Got the bad guys, exposed a plot and earned a _second_ bounty all in time for midday drinks at the bar."

"We're at a cafe old man." Naruto rejoined from his seat beside Tenten before darting forward to take a sip of the brunette's drink, eliciting a playful swat from the girl.

They were back at the cafe Tenten and Naruto had stayed two days prior, having sorted out the whole 'Renga' situation with Shibasaki's swift and honest confession. With the town administration now aware of the veritable gold mine they sat on, Jiraiya had invoked some of the more political powers his status as a Sage allied to Konoha granted him and begun preliminary discussions on trade with the town.

"Semantics." The Sage waved dismissively as he rolled two scrolls over to the younger shinobi. "Yours and Tenten's pay for the bounties of Renga and Suika, equally split per your decisions. Taki added fifty percent of the total bounty as a bonus for bringing Suika in alive but deducted ten percent for his seemingly brain-dead state."

Naruto whistled. "Damn, old man, you work fast-ow!"

"Be respectful." Tenten hissed as she retracted her elbow from his side and gave a small bow to the Sage. "Thank you, Jiraiya-sama."

"You're most welcome, Tenten." Jiraiya replied kindly before shooting a glare at the blond. "And _that's_ how to show one's elders respect."

Naruto just scoffed. "Like I'd ever respect an old man that gets his rocks off by peeping on girls in bath houses."

"What's wrong with that?" Tenten asked, completely flooring the blond and causing iraiya's eyes to grow moist. "I mean, every one has their kinks right? I mean, yeah, some people see it as an invasion of privacy but as long as he isn't peeking on underage girls-" Jiraiya's near-violent rejection of the notion was enough proof of where he stood on _that_. "-and if he doesn't go poking his nose into private property… I'm honestly pretty laid back on the whole voyeurism thing. Plus, he's gotta get the ideas for his novels' bathing scenes _somewhere._ "

"She gets it!" The Sage exclaimed happily. "She absolutely gets it! Kid, why can't you be like her?!"

Naruto ignored the Perverted Sage _completely_ and turned to the brunette who was sporting a relaxed smile. "Tenten… I don't know you."

"Get to know me then." She shot back teasingly. "I got _layers._ "

The blond held her gaze, enjoying the look of playful mischief in her warm brown eyes and felt his heart skip. "Maybe later."

' _Naruto, you've had sex with me, Mira and both of us in one go. Do you really think I'd hold you back from having relationships with other girls, eve if they're human? Go on! Besides, its pretty clear that she's fallen for you anyway.'_

The snippet of the conversation he'd had with Kyuubi flashed through his mind and he sent a silent word of thanks to the Queen of Makai.

"So, Jiraiya-sama, what next?" Tenten asked, returning the conversation to a more serious topic.

"Well, I've gotta stay back here to hammer out a few more items on the preliminary proposal the town leadership and I are working on so that'll keep me here for… a week, tops." The Sage mused. "Then, it's off to Frost for me; a contact of mine has valuable intel on that cloudy situation we talked about, Naruto."

The blond caught his teacher's meaning and he nodded. "So Tenten and I should head home?"

"Yeah… Yeah." Jiraiya tugged a stray strand of hair as he thought before coming to a decision. "Yes; the two of you head on back to Konoha; I'll hurry up here, hustle to Frost and then race back to meet you at… Tanzaku Gai sound good?"

"Yeah. Shouldn't take more than a week to get there so we'll stay at _that_ hotel, wait for you for three days then hoof it to Konoha."

"Sounds like a plan."

"I needed an excuse to run anyway." Tenten shrugged. "I'll never admit this to Gai-sensei or Lee but I actually enjoy their _less outrageous_ training methods and running's one of the things I've come to love."

"Well then, miss, let's go pack up and meet at the gates in… half an hour?" Naruto suggested.

"Sure."

‹‹‡››

 **MINDSCAPE**

Deep within Naruto's mindscape, in the recesses of the cavernous cell that held her, the Queen of Makai schemed.

Tenten had been a wild variable thrown into her plans that had threatened to set off a chain reaction of events hat could have resulted in the failure of her carefully thought out plans.

At the same time, the girl, and the very concept she stood for, provided a heretofore unseen angle that could bolster her plans in _so many ways!_

' _I can't afford to sever his connection to humanity; not as he is now. He's too attached to people, too willing to trust and he has too may bonds. Besides, if I push too far, force him to sever those bonds, he'll kick back; it was a stroke of luck that Jiraiya's confession came when it did, I can't hope for too much.'_ She frowned, her left foot tapping out a continuous beat that she didn't notice. _'At the same time, if he develops the right bonds to the right people, it could hasten his distrust of Konoha, maybe even most forms of authority in general. With Mira, Erza and I among the host of others I expect him to bed, he might come to see Makai as a haven…'_ She glanced at a still image of Tenten, smiling in a carefree manner, an image taken from one of his memories. "Who are you, Tenten? And, more importantly, what role can you play in my plans?"

‹‹‡››

"I would never have guessed!" Tenten laughed as they continued their journey, the trees blurring into an indistinct pastel in their minds as they kicked off the branches. "With your boundless energy, I always figured you'd be attuned to lightning."

It was the third day since they had left Ikazuchi and they had spent most of the time on the move, pausing only to eat and rest. The brunette kunoichi had surprised him when she showed herself capable of keeping up with him for much longer than most people could. "I'm on a team with Gai and Lee, Naruto, it shouldn't be _that_ surprising." She had said in response to his questions.

"Nope; I'm all breezy." Naruto replied. "How about you?"

"Lightning affinity here." She replied with a grin that sent a slight shiver up his spine. "Makes throwing pointy objects even _more_ dangerous."

"Perfect marksmanship meets unreal piercing power…" The blond winced. "That would be a bitch to go up against."

"I know right? Took a while but Ibiki-sensei's a good teacher. Brutal, yeah, but good."

"Must have been a blast." Naruto muttered, reminded of the level of Kakashi's incompetence at training him. "I wonder, if you run lighting chakra down the edge of a sword, would it do anything to the cutting power of the blade or does it only work for piercing attacks?"

"Hmm… Marginally, yeah…" Tenten hummed as she thought over the question. "I mean, where wind chakra grinds itself until it creates a keen edge while reducing resistance on the patch of the cut, lightning chakra works by increasing the vibration of the weapon itself by orders of magnitude so when you jab it forward, it basically vibrates objects out of its path."

"So if you _slash_ instead of _jabbing_ , it'll act like… a buzz saw?"

"Pretty much. I mean, the cut will seem pretty clean, not as 'flesh rending' as an actual buzz saw cut would look but it won't be as effective as a wind-enhanced cut which would pretty much slice through-"

"Get down!"

Naruto's yell came a split second before he tackled her out of the air, falling to the ground with himself as her cushion as a thunderous explosion rocked the forest.

"Naruto!" To her ears, battered by the sound of the explosion, her voice sounded tinny but it didn't matter how she sounded; her body **hurt** all over and she had been protected from most of the impact by Naruto. "Naruto, how are you feeling?"

"I'm alive." He groaned as he listened to Kyuubi berate him for the thoughtless act. "I probably could have planned that better."

A burble of relieved laughter spilled out as she finally gained enough energy to roll off him. "Yeah…"

"How about you?"

"Everything's sore, nothing's broken." She replied as she slowly got to her feet before helping him up. "What the fuck was that?"

"Methane explosion." The blond answered, lifting his face to the sky and inhaling deeply. "I caught a whiff of the gas as we ran and my danger senses just went… haywire."

"Do you want to scout the site?"

"I was thinking of it, yeah." He admitted. "I mean, methane explosions typically occur in mines, not in the middle of forests."

"Got a heading?"

‹‹‡››

The explosion site was the stuff of nightmares.

No, it _was_ a nightmare.

An area approximately a mile wide had been scorched clean of every form of greenery, leaving the barren wasteland an unholy scar in the beauty of the vibrant forest, burnt and blackened stumps littering the clearing.

The soft crackle of the earth beneath their feet was broken by a sharp 'crack!' as Naruto stumbled on something…

A dried out skull.

"Oh my…"

Tenten couldn't complete that statement when the taste of bile rose up in the back of her throat as more details were revealed to them.

Two bodies lay sprawled on the ground behind the remnant of what Naruto recognized as an earth wall; the battered and broken bodies were burnt beyond recognition, their faces frozen in a sloughed rictus of agony.

"What… What could have done this?" Naruto whispered, sounding pained by the gory imagery they were surrounded by. "A methane explosion couldn't have resulted in this; not to this ext-"

"Naruto!" He froze at Tenten's unspoken urging, listening…

There! A moan!

The two Konoha nin moved at top speed, appearing beside a _third_ body, this one surrounded by a ring of what looked like volcanic rock.

It was a young woman, her nude body sprawled carelessly like a marionette tossed on the ground by a petulant child. Her skin was a horrendous sight; majority of what must have been supple skin now reduced to a mess of weeping blisters and cooked flesh.

That she was alive was a miracle.

Naruto was a blur of motion as he dug through his equipment pouch and pulled out a blank scroll and his fuinjutsu materials.

"Tenten, get ready to help me move her." He ordered, his mind locked firmly in mission mode as he swiftly began to ink out a seal on the blank parchment. "This seal will keep her in stasis until we can get her medical attention."

It didn't take long for the brunette to figure out his intentions; the level of damage the woman had received was horrendous and she knew of only one person that could heal such: Senju Tsunade. "Understood."

It was a harrowing period; Naruto couldn't afford to rush beyond a certain speed lest he risk destabilizing the seal and potentially causing the woman's death yet hearing her pained moans frayed his nerves, pushing at him to work faster and faster still.

"Done!" He scanned the prepared scroll hastily, searching for flaws and, finding none, he turned to Tenten. "This is it."

Tenten gulped; they would undoubtedly have to move the woman onto the scroll for him to finalize the sealing yet moving her… "On three." They positioned herself around the woman, dragging the scroll as close as possible to minimize the distance they would have to cover. "Three." They hunched over, hands close to the woman. "Two." Breaths stilled. "One!"

The woman blacked out the instant they touched her, her hypersensitive flesh overloading her ind with pain.

It didn't matter; within two seconds, she was on the scroll and the sealing matrix had crept over her skin, locking out the flow of time around her. A second later and she was within the pocket dimension of the scroll.

Naruto immediately created a shadow clone after pocketing the scroll. "Get to Tanzaku Gai and wait for Jiraiya. If he doesn't show two days after the set time, dispel." The clone nodded and shot off into the distance while Naruto gestured to Tenten. "Get on my back. I'm faster than you are and can keep going for longer."

She wanted to argue but, in the face of things, she simply obeyed. "I'll take over if you get tired during the day then we'll rest at night."

"Fine." Naruto took a moment to adjust to her weight before shooting off in a blur.

‹‹‡››

 _ **I got quite a number of suggestions for Naruto last chapter and though I'm still waiting to for any more suggestions, I will say that I didn't get some of the more common suggestions.**_

 _ **Interesting…**_

 _ **Well, I've introduced a character that will end up as a bedmate [maybe not a harem member though] though she's pretty banged up at the moment but we'll see as things go.**_

 _ **Plus, thanks to this route, I can [and will] get Naruto back in Konoha without wasting more time.**_

 _ **Things will definitely move forward now as we inexorably head toward Konoha's fall from Naruto's grace.**_

 _ **I hope Kyuubi's tidbit there explains why the Queen of Makai hasn't made Naruto a generic 'I hate humans' character.**_

 _ **Thank you all and please drop more suggestions about Naruto's potential ladies. I'll put up a poll to determine those that'll make up his ACTUAL harem as opposed to simply being booty calls.**_

 _ **BTW, that explosion? Yeah, further clarification is coming about that.**_

 _ **Please Read and Review.**_


	17. Return: Chapter 16

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 16**

" _Your bastard grandfather took_ _ **everything**_ _away from me!"_

" _Kurotsuchi! Get back!"_

" _Burn in hell! Scorch Style: Infernal Storm!"_

" _No-! The methane-!"_

" _Lava Style: Earthen Dome of Magnificent Nothingness!"_

 _Searing heat…_

 _Agony…_

Kurotsuchi's eyes cracked open slowly and her vision was filled with blank whiteness.

'Is this the afterlife?' She wondered as she tried to focus, hoping to see _something_ in the blankness. 'Seems boring really.'

Letting out a tired sigh, she tried to take a step forward only to feel a wave of utter exhaustion wash over her. 'Weird. Do dead people get tired?' She rested, gathered her energy and tried tried again only to be faced with the same result. 'Okay, now I _know_ something's up.' She sucked I a deep breath [do souls breathe?] and called out loudly: "Hello?!"

The effort nearly wiped her out as ripples of needle-like pain coursed down her throat, bringing tears to her eyes.

Most people would have stopped trying, after all, weren't they already dead?

Kurotsuchi, though, was made of sterner [well, more mulish] stuff and, taking another moment to fight back the pain, she tried again.

And again.

And again.

"Gods damn it girl would you stop that?!" An irate voice exclaimed as a shadowy figure appeared in her line of sight. "I did not spend the last _three_ nights working on you just to have you turn your vocal cords to stringy mush!"

The sound of the voice -the _female_ _ **human**_ _voice-_ was enough to halt Kurotsuchi's attempts and, as she watched, the shadow moved closer and stretched out its appendages toward her face…

Colour seemed to fade into existence as a white cloth was pulled off her face and Kurotsuchi immediately knew where she was.

It was easy for her to recognize the general layout even if she had never been in this specific room before, considering how hard she trained and how often she had been carried off for medical attention.

She was in a hospital.

"Here. Take small sips." The voice said from somewhere to her side, just outside her line of sight as she felt something slip between her lips. A straw.

"Can you move your head?" The woman asked, prompting Kurotsuchi to attempt the required motion. Left. Right. Down. Up. Everything seemed to be working well though she didn't attempt to push too much. She knew that, in situations like these, baby steps were the way to go. "Alright, nicely done. Did you feel any pain just now?" She shook her head in the negative. "You're sure? Not even a little ache?" When she shook her head again, she heard a distinctive scratching sound: pen on paper. The woman was taking notes. "Okay. Good. Now I need you to rest; I'll be back in a bit."

Kurotsuchi tried to nod twice; halfway through the second, she had drifted off to sleep…

‹‹‡››

The next time she opened her eyes, the voice was waiting.

"Water?"

She nodded and the straw was slipped between her lips again.

Satisfied, she pushed the straw through her lips and, curious to see her mysterious caretaker, she turned her head to the side the straw had come from.

Even dead [and she still believed that she _was_ dead] she could not forget that face.

A living legend, widely recognized the strongest kunoichi and one of the most powerful shinobi alive, one third of the infamous Densetsu no Sannin and without a doubt the single greatest medic in the world.

The Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato.

Senju Tsunade.

Said woman arched an eyebrow at her. "Judging by the gaping maw, I'd say you recognize me. That's good."

"Where-?" Her question was broken by a series of hacking coughs that had the blonde Kage by her side instantly, a glowing green palm hovering over her throat while she colored the air blue.

"I swear, you're just as stubborn as he is!" Tsunade growled softly. "You were nearly cooked alive, girl, and your insides are still a bit tender. No more talking till I say so."

Kurotsuchi nodded. When the best fucking medic in the _world_ gives an instruction, it's in one own best interest to listen.

"Now, to answer the question you nearly ruined your throat for, you're in Konoha, specifically one of the vacant rooms in my old apartment." Tsunade replied, stepping back now that the little damage had been healed. "You're too important to be kept in the open, not when a few people might hold a grudge or two against Iwa."

If she could have spoken, Kurotsuchi would have fired off a snarky comment. As it was, she chose to roll her eyes. Konoha nin held a grudge? Over what, not getting a few licks in following their precious Yellow Flash's utter rampage?

"You're forgetting that, before he stepped in, Iwa had run roughshod over a number of Konoha outposts." Tsunade countered, reading the girl's body language perfectly. "A number of Konoha nin lost loved ones. Perhaps not as many as your village lost but you never know the actions that trigger unending hatred."

" _He took everything from me! My parents! Our home! Our_ _ **land**_ _! Everything!"_

The raven haired kunoichi shut her eyes tight, trying to block out the memory.

Tsunade watched the girl shudder quietly and knew that her words had triggered a painful memory. For an instant, raw exhaustion flashed through her eyes and visage seemed more akin to her true self. 'Years, _decades_ after and the scars of war remain as vivid as ever…' She placed a hand on the girl's shoulder and channeled her chakra. "Rest. I'll be back later to check up on you."

By the time she looked down, the effects of her little jutsu had taken hold and the girl's visage was the picture of restfulness.

After checking her I.V. and the rest of the medical devices she had monitoring the girl, the last Senju left the room.

On the bench outside the Tsuchikage's daughter's room lay Tenten, the brunette snoring lightly as she rested from a day of training with her sensei.

Pacing around the living room was the other half of Iwa kunoichi's rescuers.

"Naruto, you can stop wearing lines into my rug now." Tsunade sighed as she joined him in the room, making a beeline for a sofa. "And, to answer the question you're about to ask: she's getting better."

The jinchuriki sighed in relief just as he had done every time she had returned to inspect the girl. "Thanks Baa-chan." He practically collapsed into the sofa beside hers. "I know I'm puling you off work and all-"

"It's no problem Naruto." The Godaime waved dismissively. "She'll be able to talk after another session and she should regain her sense of touch within the next forty-eight hours, likely sooner."

"And how's her gramps taking this?"

"He blustered about starting a war if anything bad happens to her but that's to be expected." Tsunade yawned. "He knows I've got him by the balls so he's currently all talk."

"You told him not to tell anyone?"

The busty blonde snorted. "Didn't have to; his granddaughter's in enemy territory and as weak as a baby. He's not going to advertise that fact."

"True…" Naruto yawned, drawing Tsunade's full attention.

"Naruto, your eyes are bloodshot and you've got bags under your eyes from not sleeping for so long." She glared at him. She had known from the instant Tenten had marched into her office with bloodshot eyes that something was wrong, a premonition that had been confirmed when he'd snuck into her office, limbs shaking from exhaustion yet pleading for her help. That had been three days ago and she knew that, aside from a short, three hour nap, he hadn't slept since he had found the girl's body. "I'm ordering you to go to bed. Now."

"Can't." He mumbled. "Too wound up."

Tsunade's glare softened in understanding. The dumb boy's heart was just too big to sleep until he was sure that the girl was safe.

" _I can't sleep, Tsunade-chan. Not until I know that they're alright."_

"You and your big heart." Tsunade murmured as she stood up and walked behind him. Channeling a bit of chakra to her fingertips, she slowly began working on the younger blond's shoulder blades, feeling him relax almost instantly at her expert ministrations coupled with the gentle pulses of medical chakra that soothed his nerves. "I swear, you're just like him."

‹‹‡››

 _ **So, Naruto's finally back in Konoha, ending the Return arc and we see who the banged up lady was: Kurotsuchi!**_

 _ **Yeah, her name was suggested by**_ _ **dragon ninja269**_ _ **as was the general idea though I worked it a bit more to create a better fit for the story.**_

 _ **We'll see how her appearance affects things going forward.**_

 _ **As for Tsunade… First, she saw a flash of her old love, Dan Kato, in Naruto but I'm not certain I want her in the harem. Not for age purposes [Kyuubi's so much older than Tsunade it isn't even funny] but because I think Naruto needs a mother figure. One that he**_ _ **won't**_ _ **shag every other chapter.**_

 _ **Now, character intros will be slow as I explore the NaruTen connection and a few other things before Naruto's presence in Konoha is made public knowledge.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading and please be sure to review.**_


	18. Return: Chapter 17

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 17**

"... Thank you, Shizune." Tsunade nodded at her assistant as the dark haired woman emptied her outbox. "Have Iruka know that I've approved his request then let Kurenai know that she has the rest of the week off so she can prepare for her lecture."

"Understood Hokage-sama."

Just before she shut the door, Tsunade remembered something and called out.

Shizune paused and looked back. "Tsunade-sama?"

"Send a memo to Shikaku; I need to see him first thing tomorrow morning." Tsunade steepled her fingers and stared into Shizune's dark eyes. "It's about _that._ "

The dark haired jonin's eyes widened slightly before her neutral mask returned. "I'll get it done."

"Thank you." Tsunade waited until the door was shut before dropping her head onto the table, exhaustion seeping into her bones. Dealing with Konoha's shit was a full time job; between the civilian council's subtle attempts to amass political and economic power, the clan blocs' continuous jockeying for any advantages they could get over their rivals, the constant needling by the Elders to do things 'differently'… Being a Kage was a life draining job.

'And this whole 'Iwa' situation isn't making things any easier.' She thought tiredly. She knew it wasn't their fault; they certainly couldn't have recognized the Tsuchikage's daughter for who she was with the extent of damage the girl had suffered but Tsunade just couldn't ignore that high pitched, comical voice in her head that kept blaming Naruto and Tenten over and over again. She would have laughed at herself if it weren't for the annoying headache she was having.

Knowing that it was as a result of how tired she was [and feeling a bit too drained to bother with medical ninjutsu], she sat up, placed her fingers at her temples and began to massage them in gentle, circular motions.

"Here." A familiar, deep voice murmured as she felt two hands brush her hands away and rest at her temples. A few seconds later, the pain ebbed away.

"You never told me you knew how to perform medical techniques." She moaned in relief as the calming sensation of medical chakra flowed through her. "Never showed it either."

"Hey, when your teammate's the best at something, you tend to pick up a few bits here and there. The prototype of that little tattoo of yours is proof."

"I suppose…"

"You must really be feeling the mode not to have sensed me coming in."

"Please don't remind me." She groaned. "I'm in a happy place right now."

"Alright then." A pause. Then: "Would you like a shoulder massage?"

"Don't make me-"

"Shoulders only. I swear."

Tsunade opened her eyes and came face to face with Jiraiya's serious expression. Odd; whenever the chance to so much as _touch_ her came up, he tended to have a goofy, slightly perverted smile on. This time, he seemed more serious, almost _battle_ serious.

She decided to give him a chance.

She didn't regret it.

Sure, the shoulders of her kimono _might_ have slipped, giving him a bit of an eyeful but not once did he stray so much as a _hair_ away from her shoulders.

It was really quite odd…

"We need to talk."

She only _barely_ managed to suppress her sigh. 'Of _course_ it had to come with strings attached.'

His next words, though, wiped every cobweb clean out of her head.

"It's about Naruto's lineage and his heritage."

‹‹‡››

" _...I just don't know how to move forward with Tenten. I mean, she's a wonderful person and I really do think I'm falling for her but…"_

" _But…?"_

" _I don't know what to do Kyuubi! Until you, Erza, Mira and now Tenten came into my life I didn't know what it was like to truly be cared for! I didn't know what love meant! Hell, on some level, I_ _ **still**_ _don't know what it means! I want to tell you guys that I love you but I can't because I can't tell if what I'm feeling is love!_ _ **True**_ _love!_

" _Kyuubi, I_ _ **care**_ _for you; since we met, you've done nothing but help me and I am grateful for that. I truly care for you and I would move mountains if I had to for you. It's just…" A pause, deep, shuddering breath, then; "I feel the same way about Erza. Mira too and now Tenten… I care for you all but I don't know if that's enough to be called love."_

 _Silence._

" _Look at me. Naruto, look at me." Pause. "What you feel, about me, Erza, Mira and Tenten? That's the core foundation of love. Now, I can't tell you how to proceed with Tenten beyond giving you a single word of advice: be honest with her. Now, I know it seems daunting; telling her the truth about Mira, Erza and myself as well as the nature of your relationship with us seems herculean. However building your relationship on a lie… it won't end well."_

" _What… what if she hates me?"_

" _Then she's a fool that has no right to stand by your side." The response was clipped, biting. Then, in a softer tone; "You have a big heart, Naruto, with a tremendous capacity for love. The fact that you so much as care for me is proof on its own. You_ _ **will**_ _attract many lovers, Naruto, and anyone who can't deal with it should get out of the way."_

To a casual observer, she might as well have been dancing as she sliced the air with her naginata, fluidly switching between kata as she went.

To Tenten, though, it was a worthwhile way to pass the time; relying on pure muscle memory to carry her through various forms of combat with a randomly selected weapon, leaving her mind to roam.

Unlike most days, though, she wasn't particularly burdened by an overabundance of issues. Instead, much like a horse tied to a stump, her thoughts circled round a single point.

 _Naruto._

She had thought of waking him up earlier, before she left the Senju compound to keep up appearances, when she overheard the conversation that had turned her world upside down.

Not only could Naruto _talk_ to the Kyūbi, it could apparently _talk back_! And, judging by the fact that she had _heard its voice,_ it could _manifest_ in the real world! And Naruto was _**in love**_ with the _**Kyūbi**_ , even if he didn't realize it, much like he was with _both_ of his [admittedly beautiful-slash-powerful] summons.

Yet none of that seemed to matter in the face of one key fact.

He loved her but he was so broken that he didn't fully understand that he did.

'I guessed that things were bad for him when he was younger but…' She couldn't finish the thought. How could she? Like him, she was an orphan, one that was often overlooked in fact. It was part of the reason she had joined the S&I unit, part of the reason why she was every bit as good as Ino was though they worked in different ways: she was so plain that she could sink into the backdrop at any moment and very few would ever notice her.

Yet, as plain and overlooked as she was, she couldn't say that she didn't know what love was; Tsunoda may never have formally adopted her but she had always seen him as a father and she knew that, in his own way, the man had loved her like a daughter. It wasn't perfect, yes, but it was love all the same, giving her a leg up over Naruto who, as she was now beginning to understand, never had such.

The Sandaime, who Naruto had seen as a grandfather, was never truly able to show the young boy the kind of love a grandfather would show a grandson; the Ichirakus saw likely him as a young street kid that they helped along but, being business people, they never had time and Iruka? Well, the scarred chūnin had only truly begun to see Naruto as a person during his third attempt in the Academy and while he had grown to care for the boy, his duties as an instructor meant that he had to avoid anything that could have been perceived as favoritism.

" _You have a big heart, Naruto, with a tremendous capacity for love. The fact that you so much as care for me is proof on its own. You_ _ **will**_ _attract many a lover, Naruto, and anyone who can't deal with it should get out of the way."_

She couldn't fault the Kyūbi for making as harsh a statement as the last one because she knew that the bijū was right; in the short period of time that she had gotten to know him, she had been inexorably drawn to him until she had suddenly realized that she had fallen for him. She hadn't met the Kyūbi yet but, from the little she had seen of his summons, both women had fallen for him as thoroughly as she had and it would be overwhelmingly foolish to believe that the same wouldn't again happen in the future.

'I'm not getting out of the way.' She decided as she stabbed the naginata forward in what would have been a killing blow before spinning the weapon around with a flourish and slamming its butt into the ground decisively. 'I don't care how many people come to love you, Naruto, they're stepping into the line _behind me._ '

And that, as they say, was that.

‹‹‡››

'I just don't get it.' Naruto thought, watching the clouds drift lazily across the afternoon sky. 'The Senju were a force equal to the Uchiha in every way; heck, you could say that they were the more honored of the two, considering the fact that the first two Hokage's were Senju. So how the hell did a clan of well over two hundred just… fade out of existence?'

' _They're not completely gone.'_ Kyuubi pointed out. _'Or are you forgetting your_ current _leader?'_

'Come on, Kyuubi, that's not what I meant and you know it.'

In the past couple of hours since his conversation with the biju that morning, the blond had walked through the desolate Senju compound, his mind supplying him with countless images of what could have -what _should have-_ been if the founding clan still thrived as it once did. He had returned to Tsunade's old apartment in a dour state of mind, understanding why the blonde Sannin lived in the Hokage's quarters rather than in the apartment and, feeling too bothered to go in just yet, he had chosen to lay within the shade of a cherry blossom tree a stone's throw from the house.

' _Knowing humans as I do, I wouldn't be surprised if they were slowly killed off by rival clans.'_ Kyuubi suggested, continuing the conversation. _'Humans tend to be devious like that.'_

'But that should have taken ages!' Naruto protested. 'Practically every shinobi in the elemental nations loathes the Uchiha for their eyes yet, if Itachi hadn't gone batshit they'd still be running around. And that's a clan that had enemies all over the Elemental Nations!'

' _Ah, but who said anything about_ external _rivals?'_

'No.' Naruto didn't even _think_ before the word shot out of his mouth. 'Not possible.'

' _Sure about that?'_ So well did he know her that he could picture the questioning eyebrow on her face as well as the unasked question: _you sure that's not Konoha's indoctrination speaking?_

He was glad she hadn't asked that, though, because he wouldn't have been able to answer.

Kyuubi continued; _'It's a well known fact that the Senju were bitter rivals of the Uchiha, a clan that was itself renowned for the deviousness of its members. Sure, that bastard buddied up to Hashirama to get this village up and running but, in case you've forgotten, I sure as hell remember the battle that had the son of a rat-bastard riding me like some warhorse.'_

Naruto remembered and understood what she was getting at.

' _If I know humans for anything it is that they hate to feel slighted. Even when they set themselves up for it.'_

'So you're saying that the Uchiha wiped out the Senju?'

' _I may be wrong; it could after all have been another clan.'_ She shrugged, getting bored with the topic. _'It could have been any other clan that felt the Senju were getting more jobs or a larger cut of the budget or whatever. Humans pick the most stupid reasons to bear grudges.'_ Her piece said, the kitsune stretched languidly, letting out a lusty purr that drew his attention immediately. _'Now, it's been a while since our last romp, with all the travelling and the half-dead girl and all. What do say to a nice, mid-afternoon quick-'_

"You realize that I could kill you right?"

Kyuubi screamed in frustration at getting cock-blocked yet again as Naruto stared at the figure standing over him.

The sun was directly behind her, preventing him from seeing her clearly but the few features he noted were enough.

It was the girl he'd saved.


	19. Return: Chapter 18

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 18**

 _Her piece said, the kitsune stretched languidly, letting out a lusty purr that drew his attention immediately. 'Now, it's been a while since our last romp, with all the travelling and the half-dead girl and all. What do say to a nice, mid-afternoon quick-'_

" _You realize that I could kill you right?"_

 _Kyuubi screamed in frustration at getting cock-blocked yet again as Naruto stared at the figure standing over him._

 _The sun was directly behind her, preventing him from seeing her clearly but the few features he noted were enough._

 _It was the girl he'd saved._

"You're up early."

Kurotsuchi couldn't quite tell exactly what caught her off guard: his stunning resemblance to the pictures she had seen of the Fourth Hokage; the way he didn't seem bothered by her presence, though she was certain that he, at the very least, knew of her affiliation or maybe it was the way he spoke, exuding a quiet confidence that, along with his baritone sent tingles running up her-

She -almost violently- shut out the last option and focused on what he had said. "You seem surprised."

He shrugged lazily. "When the best damned medic in the world gives a timeline, you tend to believe it." He didn't bother with names but she knew exactly who he was talking about and it re-affirmed that her conversation with the Godaime Hokage hadn't been a fevered dream. "Though to be fair, you're mostly within her timeline, just on the early side."

Quiet reigned for a few moments and she took the opportunity to commit his features to memory, noting the differences between himself and the man her village despised.

Though he bore the same hair and eyes as the Yondaime, his facial structure was different enough to assure her that he wasn't a clone; while the Yondaime's features were slimmer and more angular, this guy had a more rounded face, his jawline not quite as pointed as the Fourth Hokage's. They had similar builds, though the Youndaime was probably an inch or two taller as at the time of the War and she had no doubt that, had she first spotted him with his back to her, she might have been _much_ more tempted to try to kill him, frail body or not.

"Like what you see?" His words snapped her attention back to the present just in time for her to see him wink at her in such an overly suggestive tone that she couldn't help but smile.

"You're a tad too twiggy for my tastes Blondie." She shot back, wondering how she had gone from being wary around him to slinging wisecracks. 'Better keep my guard up around him.'

The shinobi just laughed as he patted the grass beside him. "I think you should get out of the sun, Size-Queen. You're already looking a little peaked."

"Gee, thanks Matchstick." She rolled her eyes but accepted his offer, sitting far enough that she could keep an eye on him. "I gotta say, you're quite odd for an ANBU."

"Hah?" He turned his head to her, an incredulous look on her face. "You think I'm an ANBU?"

"That or a pretty strong jōnin." She replied. "I'm usually spot on when I gauge people's power tier and you strike me as one of those elite ANBU or jōnin types."

He chuckled at her words and the sound brought back those ting -'Nope! Not recalling those!' "Well, I'm quite flattered but I'm afraid you're wrong."

Her eyebrows shot up. "You're pretty young to be an ANBU captain but it isn't unheard of I suppose."

"Wrong again." This time, his grin annoyed her.

"Jōnin commander?"

"Jeez, gonna call me a Kage when I say no this time?"

"Well _are_ you?"

He burst out into raucous laughter, annoying her to no end.

"Okay… okay…" He was barely able to squeeze the words out between laughs but, finally, the laughter died down to mere snickers. "Okay Pink-Eye, you may not believe it but… I'm actually just a genin."

"Bullshit." Her response was immediate; no genin alive could exude such an aura of quiet confidence, a feeling that said 'Hey, I know I'm powerful so there's really no need for me to go bragging.' The only ones who had seen enough, _done enough,_ to have such a relaxed air about themselves were elite jōnin and ANBU. "I call complete bullshit on that."

"It's true." He shrugged, a relaxed smile on his face. "I didn't get promoted during the only chūnin exams I've sat for and, due to… well, _reasons,_ I haven't been promoted."

Kurotsuchi goggled at that. What the hell was Konoha thinking?! She was no sensor but gauging skill and power levels within seconds was an ingrained habit, one that had never failed her. If this guy was _officially_ a genin… no, there had to be a deeper reason for his official ranking to be so low. Maybe it had to do with his looks? Yes… the more she thought about it, the clearer the answer seemed; he was likely within her age bracket, perhaps younger, which would put him at infancy when the Yondaime died… he might as well have been the Fourth Hokage with his looks. In fact, as she mentally pictured him in Konoha's standard jōnin uniform with Fourth's signature cloak over his shoulders, the answer seemed to click.

This was the son of Namikaze Minato and Konoha was doing its damn best to keep him a secret.

'Too bad for them; I've already figured it out.' She stared straight ahead and schooled her features to hide the smirk that she felt inside. 'Gramps will be all too happy to know this.'

"Yo Pink-Eye, you there?"

" _Don't_ call me that." She growled as she snapped back to the present. "Seriously, I suffered enough of that back home."

"Ah…" The undertone of understanding that she caught from him baffled her. If this guy truly _was_ the Fourth Hokage's son then Konoha likely _worshiped_ the ground he walked on. Why would a guy like that sound like he understood the pains of being called names?

"Well then, Size Queen-" Just like that, he washed away her confusion by triggering a flood of annoyance.

"You are an asshat, you know that?"

That relaxed smile of his set her teeth on edge. "One tries. Anyway, I was just wondering how you're holding up."

"Now you ask?"

"My manners took a hike and just returned."

The kunoichi let out an exasperated sigh. 'Just gotta hang on till I can hoof it out of here.' She repeated the thought like a mantra until she felt ready to speak again. "I'm fine. Tired, sure, maybe a li'l sore but I'm good otherwise."

"Well, that's great then." He replied as, in a burst of movement, he went from lying beside her to stretching as far as he could, now up on his feet. "Guess I'll be seeing you around."

"Yeah yeah." She waved dismissively as she leaned on the tree. "Gotta go report to your higher ups or whatever."

He turned to her, a confused expression on his face. "Um… I'm not here to monitor you."

It was her turn to laugh. "Yeah, right."

"No seriously." He continued. "I'm here till Baa- till Godaime-sama returns to check up on you and give you a clean bill of health or whatever."

"What, so you're a medic?"

"No, I'm one half of the pair that saved your life.

‹‹‡››

‹‹‡››

"... so we meet up tomorrow at, hmm… how's Kurosaki's sound?" Anko asked, looking round to see if any of her team had any opinions.

"Kurosaki's… Kurosaki's… Wait; you mean that awesome sake joint by the RLD?" Ohara asked with stars in his eyes, prompting lots of playful eyerolls around the table. It was a well known fact that he was an avid drinker. "Holy- count me in!"

"Well, our resident sake critic's given his vote, what are we waiting for?" A pink haired chūnin yelled from the back, prompting another round of laughter and a 'Screw you!' from Ohara.

"Looks like you guys have decided." Anko laughed. "Miya'll con him into showing up there and we all pop out and throw Konoha's newest jōnin a big S&I celebration party! Whoo!"

The group burst into loud cheers in anticipation of what would undoubtedly be a fun night even as they began to head out until only Anko and Ino were left in the S&I briefing room.

"I swear, half the time we're all in for a meeting, I'm led to believe that we're just a bunch of party goers." Ino said with a smile as she moved over to sit beside her captain.

"Seems that way to you too huh?" Anko laughed as she drained her saucer of the sake within before refilling it from the jug she had brought with her. "It's something of a necessity though. I mean, if the Konoha refuses to celebrate our achievements then the least we can do is to celebrate our selves."

The comment sobered Ino up, a reminder of the slights they at the S&I often endured and she decided to change the subject. "So, Tenten's still not back?"

"She's back, actually." Anko replied. "Got in three nights after you guys." Ino nodded, knowing that her captain was referring to Tea Ten's CapInt* mission on the border of the Land of Fire.

"So where is she?"

"Well, like your mission, hers went sideways as well." Anko sighed, recalling her discussion with Tsunade two nights ago. "I can't give you the full details but I _can_ tell you that there's a deal in the making that will give Konoha access to A-Grade chakra metal in exchange for a number of favors."

Ino whistled softly. A-Grade chakra metal was the top tier of chakra metals [if one didn't count the fabled S-Grade stuff that was generally believed to have been used to make legendary weapons like the Nidaime's _Raijin no Ken_ or any of the Seven Swordsmen's Blades]. It was really rare but it distributed chakra unlike any other metal, making it ideal for use in conjunction with elemental chakra as it required minimal effort for the chakra provided to swiftly flow through the weapon. "Damn! Our girl got lucky."

"Two hundred says she's already bargained for a few hundred ounces of the stuff as her payday for the mission?" Anko grinned.

"Fuck no!" The blonde swiped her captain's saucer and drained its contents in a single shot, savoring the slight burn in her throat. "I call sucker bet. You're just looking for some poor sap to fleece."

Anko threw her head back and laughed. "Hey, you're pretty flush from your mission now aren't ya?"

"I've got shopping to do!" Ino cried indignantly, though her mind was somewhere else. She had spoken to Sakura the day before and her pink haired friend had let slip that a certain blond was expected to return to the village soon. Now, Ino wasn't exactly sure when -no, that was a lie; she knew _the exact moment-_ she had begun to see Naruto as more than the loudmouth he had been as a child and, the more she thought over it, the more she hated herself for her part in compounding the pain he had endured throughout his life.

At first, she had hated Shikamaru for telling her; for shattering her view of the world but, within a week, the guilt had set in and soon enough, Sakura had to point it out: she had grown a lot more withdrawn. Sakura, Ami, the rest of the Rookies… she had slowly but surely pulled away from them, feeling ashamed of the things she had done as a child.

Now that _he_ was coming back, she saw it as her chance; a chance to talk to him, to get to _know him_.

A chance to earn his forgiveness.

‹‹‡››

Naruto sat on the roof of Tsunade's apartment, looking down at the starry lights of Konoha now that night had fully set in.

The Senju compound, unlike the Uchiha's, was built of one of the higher sections of the Village, closer to the Hokage monument. It was for this reason that he could observe the Village as he now did.

"So what do you think?"

A few feet away, sat Tenten, the weapons mistress having walked up to him just before sunset. 'I want to know,' she had said, uttering the sentence so softly that, were they in a crowd, none but himself would have heard it.

He had granted her wish, of course, directing her up to where they now sat, sparing only a moment to activate a silencing field seal around them before he launched into a full explanation of everything that had led up to that moment; his parents, the sealing, Konoha's unending acts of violence, the events of the past six months… he laid it all before her.

It was now her turn to speak.

"I…" The brunette tried to speak, paused, sighed and then tried again. "It's a lot to take in at once Naruto… I mean, the Yondaime was your dad and Uzumaki Kushina was your mom. That _alone_ blows my mind. Then the things that Konoha did to you… I don't know how you _survived_ that, to say nothing of how you're still able to smile." She paused again, feeling her heart pound against her ribs. "And now… you made a deal with the Kyūbi, you've fallen in love with her and two of her guardians… It's a lot to take in."

"It is, isn't it?" Naruto said with a smile, though he felt his heart wrench and he looked away from her. She would leave him. All her words, her body language… it pointed to one thing: she would leave-

He was stunned out of his own mind when he felt a warm body tackle him, pinning him to the tiles of the roof as slender arms went around his neck and his eyes locked onto deep brown orbs that seemed almost pitch black in the night.

"Whatever happens, though, you'll _always have me by your side._ " And with that promise, Tenten kissed him, a soft, tender affair that nevertheless conveyed the depth and intensity of her vow.

‹‹‡››

 _ ***CapInt- A coined slang for Capture and Interrogation missions**_

 _ **Alright, another one banged out!**_

 _ **Now let's see… Between the last chapter and this we've got:**_

 _ **-Tsunade and Jiraiya having a major issue to talk about [we'll get back on that]**_

 _ **-Tenten's decision regarding Naruto (as well as a snippet of a discussion with Kyuubi where she warns him of his impending harem)**_

 _ **-Kurotsuchi awakens and talks to Naruto**_

 _ **-Ino's new stance on Naruto revealed**_

 _ **-And Tenten seals the deal with her man (verbally. The smut's on its way).**_

 _ **I think that's a decent number of things to cross out within a (in story) twenty-four hour period.**_

 _ **So, Kurotsuchi fans out there, your girl's definitely going to end up with Blondie as things progress. Ino fans, she's coming (in both terms).**_

 _ **I'm hearing quite a lot of 'Shion' 'Shizuka' 'Ryuzetsu' and 'Koyuki'. Who knew the filler ladies were so popular?**_

 _ **Anyway, I'm getting as many of these out of the way because APRIL!**_

 _ **MK11!**_

 _ **GoT The Final Season! [unless that little Flash prediction comes true]**_

 _ **Avengers: Endgame!**_

 _ **See, with the above listed EPIC distractions in the near future… well, this story might just have to be put on hold.**_

 _ **At least until mid-May.**_

 _ **Anyhow, kindly drop a review please. I'd like to know if you guys like my portrayal of Kurotsuchi as well as Ino's desire.**_

 _ **Later guys.**_


	20. Return: Chapter 19

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 19**

Kurotsuchi couldn't sleep.

It had nothing to do with pain or soreness; Tsunade had returned the night before to ensure that she was healing well and as painlessly as possible [which was _very_ possible, considering the woman's skill level].

It had nothing to do with her dreams; while she dreaded the constant replays she was forced to live with in her sleep, dreams generally implied that the dreamer was _asleep_. She hadn't gotten a wink.

No, the girl couldn't sleep because she was too busy frigging her clit off to the unending sounds that came through the roof above her.

Slaps. Grunts. Thwacks. Moans. Slurps. Groans.

Etcetera. Ad Infinitum.

It. Was. Maddening!

She had known that people were up on the roof the night before, considering the fact that she had heard whispers and all, but it hadn't bothered her. In fact, it had been easy to ignore the whispers and try to fall asleep.

It was impossible to ignore the sounds of sex, not when they were being as loud as they bloody well could!

" _Kami, Ten-chan your pussy feels so good!"_

" _Ungh! Naruto your dick's so big!"_

" _Go deeper Ten-chan!"_

" _Harder Naruto!"_

For the umpteenth time that night, Kurotsuchi's hips jerked violently, her pussy clamping down hard on the fingers she had stuck into it, releasing another squirt of orgasmic release.

The strength of the orgasm wiped her out, mercifully putting her to sleep.

The two on the roof simply kept going like rabbits.

‹‹‡››

By the time she consciously realized that she was awake, her brain had already processed a deluge of information and provided varying paths of action that she could take with the best possible option sitting at the forefront of her mind.

It was an acquired skill, one that Anko had beaten into them, sometimes literally.

' _You may not be able to tell when your cover's blown. Training your brain to instantly catalogue and analyze information, even while your conscious mind is still booting up, may be the only thing standing between you and_ _ **seriously**_ _disgruntled bedmate.'_

Taking care to ensure that she still seemed to be asleep, she swiftly reviewed the information at hand; herself and Naruto were still on the roof of the Godaime's old apartment in the Senju compound, he was still asleep following their two-hour sex fest with her head on his chest, the sun wasn't up yet, though the skies had lightened to a deep purple hue that heralded a new day.

Most importantly, someone was seated on the roof with them, someone who wasn't there before they had fallen asleep.

"You're quite alert for someone who should have been knocked out by now."

The voice was calm, conversational in fact, but it filled the bun-haired girl with trepidation.

That was the voice she had overhead less than twenty four hours ago.

The voice of the Kyūbi.

"You realize that I already know you're awake." The tailed-beast-turned-human continued. "Is there really any need to uphold this charade?"

Tenten didn't respond at first, mulling its words in her head before sighing and sitting up, not at all bothered by her own nudity.

Then, she set her sight on the Kyūbi, seated in _seiza_ and promptly forgot how to breathe.

If Mira's beauty was that of a supermodel's and Erza's was of a warrior then the woman before her was the picture of regal beauty touched by divinity.

"I take it you know who I am?"

It took Tenten a few seconds to realize that the question was for her at which point she shook her head and forced herself to focus. "You're the Queen of Makai. The Kyūbi."

The kimono-clad woman nodded once.

"I don't get it; you're sealed within Naruto." Tenten frowned. "How are you out here now? And what's your name? It can't possibly be Kyūbi."

The woman arched an eyebrow. "Why can't it be?"

Taking note of her attempt to sidestep the first question, Tenten replied, " _Kyūbi_ literally means 'Nine-Tails'. I find it a bit difficult to believe that you'd have a name so… on the nose."

The woman stared at her unblinkingly until a corner of her lips quirked upward. "You're not wrong."

The brunette waited a bit longer then, "I'm guessing you're not going to be telling me your name any time soon?"

The woman shook her head. "Very perceptive."

A little detail flashed across her mind and the kunoichi sought confirmation. "I read somewhere that names have power. Does this have anything to do with that?"

The woman nodded. "You can keep calling me 'Kyuubi' though; I'm not averse to it."

"Alright then." Tenten shifted a bit closer to NAruto, seeking more of his warmth in the chill of the night. "You already know my name."

The woman inclined her head.

"So, back to my first question…" The kunoichi noticed the slight pursing together of her lips and guessed that Kyuubi wasn't pleased that she had remembered the question. She pressed on anyway. "How come you're out here and not in here?" She patted Naruto's stomach lightly.

"You're a tad _too_ perceptive for my liking." Kyuubi stated bluntly, causing the brunette kunoichi to smile almost imperceptibly. The Queen remained silent for a while before sighing. "I utilized a reverse-summoning technique. It acts in a somewhat opposite manner to the regular summoning technique in that rather than the summoner pulling the summon across to where he or she is, the summon connects with the summoner and is immediately transported to their side."

It didn't take long for Tenten to grasp the meaning of her words, having had two sensei that could each perform the summoning technique. "So you reverse summoned yourself out here."

Kyuubi turned toward the horizon where the sky seemed to have grown brighter and hummed her assent. "Unlike when Naruto summons me, though, this drains me to a dangerous level, like a human on the verge of chakra exhaustion as you call it."

"Nasty."

"Very."

"So why do you do it?"

The Queen slanted a deadpan stare at the kunoichi. "You try being cooped up in someone's gut for years on end and tell me you wouldn't take every last opportunity to watch the sunrise."

The response, and the dry manner of its delivery, drew a wince from the brunette. "Point taken."

The two spent the next few moments simply enjoying the cool night air before Tenten yawned.

"Well, I'm going to see if I can catch a few more moments of sleep before my internal alarm goes off." She said as she snuggled into Naruto's side, pushing as much of herself into contact with the comfortable warmth he exuded. "Talk later?"

"We'll see." The Queen replied shortly. Just before the brunette dozed off, she called out.

Tenten turned toward Kyuubi. The moment their eyes connected, the kunoichi found herself unable to look away, speared through by the Queen's amber gaze.

"Over the past couple of months, I have come to see Naruto as someone very dear to me." Though she sounded as conversational as she had, Tenten could sense the steely determination that laced every word. "If you were to hurt him in _any_ way… my wrath will find you." Threat delivered, the Queen smiled beatifically at the kunoichi. "Pleasant dreams."

‹‹‡››

Naruto couldn't help but grin widely as he made his way into the dining room that morning, Tenten cuddled up to his side.

He had a girlfriend!

Yes, he had, in fact, shouted it from the rooftop earlier.

Who wouldn't?

He, the guy pretty much everyone had shunned as a kid, had been greeted with a steamy 'good morning' kiss that had devolved into half an hour of tender, basking-in-the-sunrise sex, topped of with Tenten assuring him that yes, the previous night _wasn't_ a dream and she was, now and forever, his.

Nothing -absolutely _nothing-_ could kill his glow.

"You two are fucking assholes."

The amount of pure venom packed into that statement slammed into the lovebirds like tsunami.

A hard, constant, tapping drew their attention to the only other person in the room.

She was seated at the oak dining table, hunched over a steaming mug, staring at the two of them with bloodshot eyes, her hair hanging limply around her face and her skin looking even paler than usual.

Simply put, Kurotsuchi looked like _shit_.

Tenten recoiled at the sight, instantly recognizing the signs of a sleep deprived woman.

Fortunately, Naruto was a mulish young man with all the social graces of a feral monkey. He had decided that nothing would kill his 'new girlfriend' glow and he was downright determined to keep it that way.

So, with a thousand watt smile, he sauntered into the room, helping Tenten to a seat (thankfully _opposite_ the irate Iwa kunoichi) on his way to the adjoining kitchen. "Good morning to you too, Size Queen."

The moniker drew different reactions from the ladies in the room; Tenten seemed both confused and amused by it and she decided to ask him about it later.

From Kurotsuchi, though…

"Fuck you asshat!" She screamed, flying out of her chair with such force that the poor thing fell to the ground with a crash. "Do you have _any_ _ **idea**_ what it was like being awake ALL night, forced to _listen_ to you screw Screamer over there-" Tenten was incredibly relieved that the enraged girl wasn't holding her mug as she angrily jabbed a hand to point at her lest she take an unplanned 'hot bath' "- _over and over and_ _ **over**_ without even a _hint_ of concern for the horny as fuck girl lying in bed not even _fifteen_ feet beneath the two of you! I had to _frig_ myself to sleep! And fucking indoctrinated **training** means I had to get up at the _crack_ of dawn this morning so now my brain's too jumped up on training and caffeine to go back to sleep! And all because the two of you couldn't keep your _**goddamned voices DOWN!**_ "

By the time she finished, her pink pupils were isolated in a sea of red, her breath came out in short bursts and sweat ran down the sides of her face.

Cue awkward silence.

Then, with a snarl of disgust, the raven haired young woman stormed out of the kitchen.

More awkward silence, this time with lots of blushing, guilty glances between the offending parties.

"How… how did that happen?" Tenten's voice was a mix of mortified embarrassment and utter confusion. "I mean, you activated that silencing field didn't you?"

Naruto's equally confused look was answer enough.

The glow had dimmed _very_ considerably.

‹‹‡››

"Fuck do you want?" Kurotsuchi spat, no even looking over her shoulder at the approaching figure.

"Breakfast." Tenten replied contritely, placing the heavily laden tray within arms length of the other girl before taking a seat beside the tray, opposite her.

They were outside, beneath the same tree where Naruto had first encountered the Iwa kunoichi. Kurotsuchi had been forced to stay there when she realized that, not knowing the lay of the land and being a high value kunoichi of an enemy village, wandering about aimlessly could lead to her death.

She was still fuming, though she wasn't exactly certain why. It might have been due to lack of sleep as she had proclaimed during her rant or, perhaps, a violent expression of her pent up sexual frustrations (it _had_ been a while since she'd had the time to let loose). A traitorous part of her heart, though, had insinuated that it might have had something to do with the radiant glow on their faces as they arrived in the dining room.

She had promptly ignored the hell out of _that_ thought.

"Not hungry?"

The question, more precisely, the casual way it had been asked, pissed her off. "No thank you, I had my fill already."

"Wow. I don't think I've ever heard anyone put that much sarcasm into a single sentence." The brunette kunoichi shook her head. "At least have a little bite. Naruto put his heart into it."

Kurotsuchi didn't need anyone to explain what the girl meant; the Yondaime's son, Naruto if the girl was to be believed, had made her breakfast as an apology. She would have had to be the royal queen of bitches to throw it back at him, no matter how pissed she was.

That, and her stomach was beginning to consume itself.

She glanced at the tray and felt her mouth water.

"I suppose I could have a bite…" She grumbled, more to keep up appearances than out of any real emotion as she reached down and grabbed a random item off the tray.

Tenten watched with an amused smile as the raven haired girl wolfed down the items on the tray, eating with a ferocity that she had only ever seen in Ino's chubby teammate.

"We're sorry." Kurotsuchi stopped mid-chew and mentally applauded her brunette counterpart's tactic of waiting until her mouth was full before getting to the crux of the matter. "Naruto did, in fact, set up a barrier seal before we… got on with things-"

The Iwa kunoichi couldn't help it; she hastily gulped down the morsel in her mouth and fired back: "You mean before you fucked like wild rabbits?" The way the brunette's lips pursed in slight annoyance was _well_ worth the choking hazard.

"Putting it crudely." Tenten nodded curtly. "The point is, he _did_ activate the seal. The thing is, there was a hole in the roof and that affected the integrity of the seal. It worked well to keep most sounds dampened but our more energetic yells?" The brunette shook her head. "Complete breakdown."

"So you're saying that you two are actually considerate people and the only reason I didn't get any sleep for the better part of a night was simply because you guys stuck me in a room with a leaky roof?"

Tenten shrugged.

Kurotsuchi swore softly as she leaned against the tree, her appetite now sated. "Dammit, Screamer; you're making it difficult to hate you or Matchstick."

"My name's Tenten."

"Your screams kept me up at night."

"Good point." Tenten admitted. "Alright, so I'm Screamer; how'd Naruto end up with 'Matchstick'?"

Kurotsuchi recounted the tale, invariably explaining how she'd earned her nickname as well.

"Well, if you really _are_ a size queen then you should check him out." Tenten smirked at the girl's reddening cheeks. "He's packing a-"

"I did _not_ come out here to discuss your boyfriend's dick."

Tenten pouted playfully. "But it's really-"

"Kurotsuchi." The almost desperate way she had thrown the name out spoke volumes of how much she needed the topic changed. Seeing Tenten's slightly bemused expression, she continued. "My name is Kurotsuchi."

"Cool." Tenten's smile grew playful again. "Hey, do you know anyone called 'Akatsuchi' or maybe 'Shirotsuchi'-"

"Excuse me." Faster than the brunette would have believed possible, the Iwa kunoichi had gotten up and was about halfway toward the house.

In her sudden rush of movement, Tenten had caught Kurotsuchi's eyes.

The raven haired girl was on the verge of tears.

‹‹‡››

 _ **In case you guys didn't quite understand:**_

 _ **Kyuubi can reverse summon herself into the real world but at the cost of having next to no usable chakra. When Naruto summons her, because his chakra is essentially what pulls her out, she has a store of usable chakra [though it cannot be replenished unless she heads back into the seal].**_

 _ **The silencing field seal failed because the 'foundation' [the flat surface on which the seal roots itself before creating a hemispherical field structure] was compromised (it's an old apartment; it's illogical to think that it wouldn't have a few signs of old age). As a result of the compromised foundation, the seal formed the dome around Naruto and Tenten but muffled trickles of their conversation made it into Kurotsuchi's room. The louder they got, the clearer (and louder) the sounds that got into Kurotsuchi's room.**_

 _ **Anyhow, the next chapter involves Kurotsuchi explaining just how she ended up half dead in a burnt, barren, wasteland.**_

 _ **We'll see how that goes.**_

 _ **Please review! I need the fuel of your reviews!**_

 _ **Later guys.**_


	21. Return: Chapter 20

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 20**

" _My name is Kurotsuchi."_

" _Cool." Tenten's smile grew playful again. "Hey, do you know anyone called 'Akatsuchi' or maybe 'Shirotsuchi'-"_

" _Excuse me." Faster than the brunette would have believed possible, the Iwa kunoichi had gotten up and was about halfway toward the house._

 _In her sudden rush of movement, Tenten had caught Kurotsuchi's eyes._

 _The raven haired girl was on the verge of tears._

"Her name's Matsumoto and she was my best friend." Kurotsuchi murmured, hands clasped tightly in her lap.

It had taken more than an hour of pleading and persuasion but, in the end, Tenten had worn her down to the point where she simply decided to talk.

"She… It might seem hard to believe but I was bullied a lot as a kid. Nothing physical and the adults were never a part of it but… I had a health condition that limited how much I could exert myself physically at a stretch. For someone that wanted to be a kunoichi, that was really bad." She took in a deep, shuddering breath and Tenten realized how harrowing the experience must have been for her. "Gramps… he would have allowed me to stay home, get tutored on a solo basis but I wanted to be out there with kids like me so he went along with my wishes and I was admitted into the Academy. Of course, the instructors knew about my condition so they would allow me to pull back whenever things started getting too hard on me but the kids there… they never understood. They felt 'hey, the Tsuchikage's granddaughter's getting off easy!' and so they found ways to make my life hell. It didn't matter that I had to maintain an almost impossible grade on my written tests to ensure that they boosted my weaker physical scores, no, to them 'Pink Eye' was always getting favored by the instructors. It got… it got really bad in my third year and I was on the verge of quitting.

"That's when I met Matsu."

She paused, sniffled quietly, continued; "She was an orphan from a little village not too far off, Ishigakure and, at the time, she was god-sent. She was an outlier like me; the kids bullied her for being from a different village, for having mint-green hair and purple eyes… Whatever came to their minds, they used against her and for the first month of her stay, they forgot about me. It was the first time in my life that I could just sit back and watch others without being scorned and told not to curse someone with my 'witch eyes' and all I could do was study her. She didn't seem to care about any thing; she just did her thing and left everyone to yap at their own convenience.

"By the time the kids got tired of her and returned to their old target, I was ready to do anything to have her teach me to be like her.

"I don't remember exactly how we became friends but by the time we graduated we had become inseparable. We were put on a team with two other kids, making us one of the rare four-man squads the village had but we learned to rely on one another.

"Then, on a mission to a gambling den near Tanzaku Gai, I should have died."

Tenten stared at her; the firm conviction behind those words spoke volumes of the severity of the situation.

"We needed to clear out a den of raiders, a task we'd done repeatedly so one of my other teammates and I… we got cocky. We barreled in ahead of our sensei, ready to complete the mission and we found ourselves in the midst of a gathering of raiders that wanted us dead." 'An ambush.' Tenten thought with a frown. "We were in a fight for our lives and, we barely made it out. By the time we got out, we were drenched in blood, low on chakra and I was out of time. I'd exerted myself too much and my heart felt like it was going to blow up in my chest. I passed out.

"And the next thing I saw was Matsu's teary face begging me to wake up."

Tenten immediately understood. "They got you healed up somehow."

Kurotsuchi nodded. "They never told me how but… my health problem? It was gone for good."

Something about the details niggled at the edge of Tenten's mind; the location, the timing… With a little mental shake, she pushed the thought back, deciding that she could think it over at a later time.

"... we maintained our friendship in spite of the fact that Matsu and I had become lovers and we kept on getting better, etching our way into the history books as a team."

Tenten could feel it coming… the painful climax of the story.

"Fourteen months ago, we split up; we had decided that, when we hit Tokubetsu jōnin or higher, we'd each join a department for a year and come back for six months to learn from each other before splitting up again. I joined the Demolition Corps, Matsu joined the ANBU and that was it. We didn't see each other for a year.

"When we got back together, the other two felt that she seemed a bit cold, unwilling to talk but I just shoved it under the 'ANBU deal with crap' file and ignored it. A month in and she seemed back to normal and all was forgiven.

"Then we got a mission, our first since our reunion, to investigate claims about a military base in the ruins of Ishigakure."

Tenten's eyes widened in horror as her mind swiftly arranged the pieces together. "She discovered something in the ruins?"

Kurotsuchi's laugh was brittle and filled with nothing but pain. "No, she had discovered it earlier, during her ANBU stint; a file that detailed Iwa's quiet but systematic destruction of Ishi in accordance to the Daimyo's orders. The ruins just reminded her of her origins."

The pained laugh echoed hollowly around the room. "Did I tell you that she had the Scorch Release bloodline? On our way back, when I got a little frisky, she snapped and tried to kill me. She blamed Gramps for her loss and wanted to take me from him.

"The fight didn't even last long; we were standing over a methane pocket and, when our only male teammate overturned the earth to defend against one of her attacks, the gas was released.

"Matsu didn't hesitate; she just blew us all to kingdom come."

The tears came again, accompanied by silent, shoulder shaking sobs.

"She killed them… Akatsuchi… Shirotsuchi…"

‹‹‡››

While Tenten spoke to Kurotsuchi, Naruto leafed through the most recently published Bingo Book for the first time since his departure with Jiraiya, keeping an eye out for any familiar names. He was in the waiting room outside the Hokage's office, his appearance altered by a henge so that he looked like a random chūnin. At the desk opposite him, Shizune sorted out a sheaf of reports, performing the preliminary work to make Tsunade's life easier. Even though she knew _exactly_ who he was, she never once glanced at him, treating him like any other shinobi and lending credence to his act.

'So Renga and Suika have been taken out of the Book.' He noted as he shut the book ad returned it to the stack on the table. 'While Sasuke, Lee and Neji have all been added. Seems like I've got a bit of work to do.'

"You can keep it if you like." Shizune said, not taking her eyes off the papers arrayed before her. "RecInt* just got it out so Missions Control will begin distributing copies later today anyway."

"Ah, thank you, Shizune-san." He grabbed the black-covered book and slipped it into a pocket just as the doors to the Hokage's office opened up.

"Thank you for your time, Shimura-san." Tsunade said as she escorted the Elder out of her office. "I'll talk to Jiraiya; tell him to hurry back."

"Order him if you have to." Danzō growled. "We have been without our jinchūriki long enough. His three-year break ended two days ago."

"It will be done." Tsunade reaffirmed as the Elder hobbled away. As soon as he turned toward the stairs, the Godaime turned on her heel and walked back to her seat, leaving the door swinging. When she realized that the young man hadn't followed her, she growled in annoyance. "Do you need a special invite?"

He decided that he didn't.

With a grateful nod toward the Hokage's busy assistant, he slipped past the doors an instant before they closed.

"Good afternoon, Baa-chan."

"Drop the disguise." She sighed, rubbing her temples and, to her own surprise, wishing that her teammate was around to work his new-found magic. "How's our guest?"

"She seemed pissed when I left." He shrugged as his disguise seemingly 'bled off', leaving him in all his blond glory. "To be fair, it was kinda my fault."

"Why am I not surprised?" Tsunade groaned. "You have an innate talent for pissing people off don't you?"

The Uzumaki simply shrugged. "One tries. Though this time, it was more of an indirect thing."

"How so?"

Naruto launched into an edited version of the morning's events, though he danced around the reason himself and Tenten had met up the night prior.

It didn't bother him that they were talking so openly about what Tsunade had classed an 'A-rank secret until further notice': the Hokage's office had an extensive sealing array engraved into its walls by Uzumaki Mito herself; as soon as the doors closed, the entire office became a dead zone of sound, preventing any one outside from hearing a peep, even when the windows were wide open. A secondary array, designed by his parents and engraved into the underneath of the desk ensured that no counter-intelligence seals could be used within the room. And considering the fact that all entrants into the Tower were first frisked by ANBU personnel who stayed _outside_ the office as well as to keep an eye on things (really, if the Hokage couldn't handle surprise threats long enough to summon reinforcements then they likely didn't _deserve_ the rank in the first place), there was no need to bother concealing words or anything.

"You know, I'm not sure whether to feel pissed that you had sex on the roof of my old apartment or to feel bad for the girl you kept up while having sex."

"You could do both." He suggested playfully.

Tsunade stared at him. "That would mean that I'd beat you to a bloody pulp and leave your fate hanging in the balance."

He winced at the thought. "So, uh, what was Danzō doing here?"

The question brought such a black scowl to her face that he feared he might have asked the wrong question.

"The old War Hawk wanted to know why you hadn't returned." She grunted, doing her best to control her temper. She simply couldn't understand why Danzō was so dead-set on seeing the blond seated before her as little more than a tool to be used against whoever he saw as an enemy. "As you saw, he's getting really antsy."

"So what do you suggest?"

"You need to return home." She sighed. "Publicly."

It was inevitable; his leaving the village had been a well known fact and so his return had to be just as public.

He didn't like it though; there were a few things he wanted to look into, the most pressing of which was the mystery behind the decline of the Senju. The whole thing had slowly festered from a casual thought to a pressing need and he was determined to figure out how the clan had all but died out. Returning publicly meant that he would have to be much more discreet about his investigations.

'Or I could have Shizune help me…' As the new idea developed in his mind, he returned his focus to Tsunade. "How close is Jiraiya-sama?"

"Within a day's distance." She replied, schooling her features to hide her shock. Jiraiya had told her how he had lost his standing with Naruto but to actually hear the typically disrespectful blond refer to her teammate so formally…

Naruto came to a decision. "Alright. Give me his location and I'll join him tonight. We'll show up around midday tomorrow. Has he told you about our tag-along duo?"

"Yeah. Erza Scarlet and Mirajane Strauss." Tsunade still found it strange, the idea that Naruto had picked up a pair of teenage retainers during his travels but then she knew first hand how incredibly strange luck could be. "So long as they're willing to stick with our rules and not constitute a nuisance I really don't see much of a problem with their presence."

"Ah…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head in a manner that the busty Kage recognized instantly. "That last one might be a bit of an issue."

Tsunade dropped her head into her hands. Of course. It was an issue related to Uzumaki-freaking-Naruto. It _had_ to come with baggage. At least he was letting her know now. "What now?"

"Well… the thing is… Erza and Mira are beautiful." He admitted. "Like, _really_ beautiful."

That explained Jiraiya's insistence that they be granted entry into the village.

"The problem is-" _He hadn't even gotten to the problem yet?!_ "-Erza's got a bit of a short fuse and Mira's kinda like me except with her sexuality."

Tsunade felt like crying.

It sounded like this 'Mira' girl would get men all riled up and ready to blow before Erza stepped in and left a few broken bodies.

It would be Kushina and Mikoto all over again.

"Fuck this job."

‹‹‡››

 _ **RecInt- Reconnaissance & Intelligence [They work with Cryptography, Torture & Interrogation and Seduction & Infiltration to form the core of Konoha's Intelligence Division (as far as this fic is concerned anyway :) ]**_

 _ **So, with this chapter, we're bringing what I've termed the 'Return' arc to a close.**_

 _ **Arcs covered (prologue not included):**_

 _ **Day One [Chapters 1-5]**_

 _ **Day Two [Chapters 6-8]**_

 _ **Training [Chapters 9-11]**_

 _ **Return [Chapters 12-20]**_

 _ **Now you know what led to NaruTen finding Kurotsuchi in that barren wasteland and we're set to head into Shippuden territory.**_

 _ **Naruto seems mighty interested in figuring certain things out and Jiraiya's lobbied for Mira and Erza to be part of Naruto's life in Konoha going forward so those two make their return.**_

 _ **Well, now I've gotta think about how to move into the next phase.**_

 _ **Please drop reviews people. They really do help inspire me.**_

 _ **Later.**_


	22. Konoha: Chapter 21

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 21**

"Alright girl, keep it together." Ino murmured to herself as she glanced into a window as she walked by to ensure that her typical ensemble was as spotless as it could be. It had been a battle to get out of bed that morning, her entire emotions flying from a center of guilt to one of hope and finally one of fear. What would he do? Would he flat out reject her? Accept her with open arms? Or would he be completely indifferent to her? "Stop it! No second guessing; all you've gotta do is show up, act happy to see him again, slip him the note and get out. Nothing to it."

The platinum blonde almost laughed at the last statement. If there really _was_ nothing to it, she'd dance around her apartment naked.

Finally, after a harrowing journey, she approached the Village gates.

And her courage promptly deserted her.

Too bad someone noticed her presence before she could disappear.

"Ino! You made it!" Sakura was glad to see her best friend join her as she awaited her teammate. It had come as a bit of a shock the night before when Tsunade had broken the news that Naruto would be back sometime today and, giddy with excitement, she had instantly darted off to tell the blonde. Interestingly, the Yamanaka had seemed torn about the news and very lackluster about showing up, hence the rosette's surprise. "I was afraid I'd have to wait here with these two bozos."

Said 'bozos', the chūnin duo of Izumo and Kotetsu, glared at the rosette. "And here I was thinking that you were a decent person, Pinky." Kotetsu grumbled.

"Ah come on guys!" Sakura slung an arm over Ino's shoulders and flashed them a brilliant smile. "You know I respect you lots."

"Yeah yeah." Izumo waved dismissively, though he was smiling at the young kunoichi as they wandered further away. "Just show up with a decent bento next time and all will be forgiven."

"Will do!" Sakura laughed as she pulled Ino under the shade of a tree. "So, I got the day off from Tsunade-sama to wait for Naruto."

"She gave you the day off? Jeez, she's gotten soft." Ino replied with a small smile, the casual banter between her friend and the gate guards easing her nerves. "And how do you know those two? I mean, beside seeing them every time you've got a mission outside the gates."

"Ah, Tsunade-sama set them as my training partners a few months back." The rosette explained, "To quote her ' _all the strength in the world doesn't mean shit if you're trapped and can get out'._ Kotetsu and Izumo have some really interesting trap-style ninjutsu and they've been helping me work on my evasion skills as well as getting out of… well, sticky situations."

"Sounds like you've been having a blast."

"It's had its moments." Sakura shrugged and stared at her teammate. "So, how's S&I treating you?"

"Not too badly, actually." The blonde answered. "Got back from a mission not two weeks ago that dovetailed with a few leads RecInt had been chasing down so I had to head out with the boys on a related CapInt. Just got back in time to hear the good news it seems."

"Yeah…" Sakura sighed wistfully. "I wonder what he'll be like now."

"Hopefully not the energetic idiot that wouldn't let you be huh?" Though it sounded like a casual jest, Ino knew that she was sounding her friend out, trying to see if Naruto's absence had affected the rosette in any way.

As expected, Sakura laughed at the thought. "You're not getting Sasuke that easily, Piggy." Ino found herself breathing a bit easier after hearing that. Maybe getting close to him wouldn't be too- "Though, if he does seem more matured, I might just switch to Blonds."

The speed at which Ino's head snapped to stare at her had Sakura bursting into laughter again.

"Jeez, Piggy, I was kidding!"

It took a few moments for Ino to clear her thoughts up enough to laugh weakly at her own reaction. "Damn Forehead, was stand-up comedy an elective I didn't know about?"

"Maybe." Sakura winked at her friend. "Really, though, you actually thought I might go for Naruto?"

"Hey, he's not a bad choice." Ino shot back defensively before chuckling weakly. "I mean, at least you'll get loads of attention. Sasuke never gave us the time of day."

"Bah, he was too busy chasing his dreams." Sakura shrugged as she scanned the pathway leading to the gates as far as she could see. "But I suppose Naruto _would_ be a decent- Wait!" The rosette jumped to her feet and shaded her eyes with her hands to see past the glare of the sun. A wide smile blossomed on her face. "I think I see them!"

‹‹‡››

"Are you ready for this, kid?" Jiraiya asked as the gates of Konoha loomed a few hundred meters away.

Beside him, dressed in a pair of black pants with a plain orange shirt underneath a black jacket with orange details along the seams, Naruto's gaze hardened. "I really can't tell, Jiraiya. I mean, on the surface, it like a homecoming; after all these years, I'm finally coming back 'home'. The thing is, I'm pretty damned sure most of my experiences here make it more of a horror than a home."

"Kid…"

Naruto held a hand up to forestall the older man. "Look, I'm not going in to take some heads or to unleash hell on the fucking morons that hurt me as a kid. At the same time…" Naruto glanced over his shoulder to see Mira and Erza walking up a few paces behind them, thoroughly engaged in a discussion of their own and a look of cold, steely determination settled in his eyes. "I'm not that little kid that they could take out their frustrations on. If anyone raises a hand against me or the people I care about… limbs _will_ be lopped off."

The Toad Sage sighed in resignation. "Just make sure that you're on the right side of the law kid. I trust that you'll keep a cool head in most situations but… some of the more intelligent fucks might try to bait you."

The blond just chuckled. "Don't worry; I don't plan to give _anyone_ the slightest avenue to gain a hold on me."

"Alright then." Jiraiya nodded. "Meanwhile, I'll talk to Shizune about getting you access into the Archives; see if I can't charm her into giving you an Archivist pass."

"Archivist?"

""Think of it as the S-rank of access levels into the Village Archives; with it, you can access files of any given rank." Jiraiya explained. "If I recall correctly, there's currently only one person in the Village with Archivist level access: Tsunade and that's only because she's the Hokage."

Naruto whistled through his teeth as they slowly made the final climb that would bring them into full view of whoever manned the gates. "Might be a tall order, even for you."

"Just trust me kid." The Sage smirked confidently as they crested the gentle slope. "Ah… I see you've got a bit of a welcoming committee, eh?"

"Shove it Pervert." Naruto rolled his eyes though his enhanced sight easily spotted Sakura and Ino as they stood in the gateway expectantly. Behind them, about a hundred yards away, he could see Tenten casually cantering toward the gate at a pace that would ensure that she arrived just as he did. A soft smile blossomed on his face and he turned to his 'retainers' and sketched a polite bow. "My ladies, I present to you… Konoha."

‹‹‡››

When Sakura lunged toward him and wrapped him in a tight hug, Naruto had expected to feel something… a tiny twinge or perhaps a little double-thump of his heart.

It therefore came as a surprise to him when he simply hugged the rosette back, spinning her around for added effect before planting her feet right on the ground, his heart rate as calm as it had been that morning… no, even _calmer._ At least he had felt something, whatever it was, at the thought of returning to Konoha. Regarding Sakura…

Nothing.

"I am _so_ glad that you're back Naruto." The rosette smiled up at him, needing to tilt her head to look into his eyes. "And look who's grown taller!"

A self conscious laugh bubbled past his lips and he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Ah, well… I guess Jiraiya-sama might have forced me to eat healthier?" It was strange; this girl whom he had wanted, who he had almost desperately chased for a large chunk of his life… She simply didn't seem to matter anymore.

He would have said that she felt like a sister but, after a three-year absence, one was supposed to _feel_ something when they were about to be reunited with their sister were they not?

Sakura's eyes, meanwhile, had grown to the size of dinner plates at her teammate's mode of addressing the white-haired Sannin who was busy talking to the gate guards, Erza and Mira with him. "Naruto, did you just call Jiraiya-sama… well, ' _Jiraiya-sama'_?"

"Um, excuse me? I'm here too you know?"

The slightly irritated voice called his attention to Sakura's best friend and Naruto felt his eyes narrow imperceptibly.

From a young age, Ino had radiated the kind of confidence that scared most guys. It was like she knew, even back at the Academy, that she'd grow up to be a devastating beauty and so she simply wouldn't take shit from anyone.

While she hadn't gone out of her way to hurt him, she _had_ been one of the more confident detractors, letting him know exactly how impossible it was for him to amount to much more than a decent jōnin at best.

It had hurt, her words, but at least she hadn't been as vicious in her assaults as some of the others; _she_ at least believed that he could potentially become a jōnin.

"Ah, hey Ino." He smiled at her, again defaulting to rubbing his hand at the back of his head. "Sorry, Sakura here was hogging all the limelight." And _that_ was the problem: Ino had never been one to let someone else steal the attention if she could help it. He could have attributed the slightly red eyes and paler than usual skin tone to work or training or something else but the strangely subdued mannerisms?

Those were _not_ normal.

Sakura, meanwhile, was goggling at him. "Jeez, Naruto. Respecting Jiraiya-sama, not bouncing around like a hyperactive bunny and now this?" The look of surprise of her face morphed into a sly, teasing grin. "I might actually believe that you're more mature."

"He is, actually." A new but very familiar voice replied and Naruto found himself fighting the glowing grin that threatened to split his face as Tenten finally made her presence known, a light, teasing smile curving her lips. "Blondie actually grew up. No more farting in his opponent's face to win."

"That was a one time thing." He glared lightly at the brunette, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Besides, ninja do whatever it takes to win."

"Ah, yes." Tenten agreed sagely. "I can just see it now; the Legend of Uzumaki Naruto, greatest Hokage, master of the unrivalled 'Flatulence Style'."

Sakura snorted at the brunette's words. "You make it sound so decent, 'Flatulence Style'. I say we say it as it is and just call it the unbeatable 'Fart no jutsu!' by our wise Hokage."

"Oh come on Sakura!" He groaned. "You're supposed to be on _my_ side."

"To be fair, he's actually much better now." Tenten said, earning a nod from the blond. "I mean, he did take out a Kage with one technique."

Sakura, who had heard the tale from the blond himself, took the opportunity to mess with him and she grabbed her wrist and flexed her hand. "Oh yeah… I remember that. The Anti-pervert technique."

"The _A-rank_ anti-pervert technique." Tenten corrected. "And I even heard that he's got an S-ranked version of the same."

Naruto blanched.

Sakura grinned. "Oh does he?"

Tenten hummed in agreement. "I even heard that it's been added to the Forbidden scroll." The brunette then turned to Naruto and gave him a teasing smile. "It involves… ah… clones."

His features went blank. "Fuck you Ten-chan."

"Later." She winked, drawing a shocked look from Ino, though they didn't notice. " _Much_ later."

"NARUTO!" Sakura charged forward just as he dived back, narrowly dodging the fist that-

*BOOM!*

-was now capable of cratering the ground apparently.

Naruto, and Jiraiya where he stood, goggled at the sight.

"Oh fuck."

"Come here pervert!"

A muffled sob drew Tenten's attention before Ino rushed away.

"Ah… damn it…"

‹‹‡››

Ino fled the scene with a mumbled excuse that sounded horribly lame, even to herself.

She simply couldn't take it any longer; she was indifferent to how Naruto had ignored her in favor of Sakura, after all, they _were_ teammates. She wasn't particularly bothered by the exotic looking beauties that had arrived with him either; it seemed like more of a Jiraiya-situation than something Naruto had any stake in.

No, what she couldn't stand was watching someone she had trusted, someone she had begun to see as more of a friend than Sakura, flirt so easily with him.

Her time with Anko in the S&I had taught her to read people's body language and, as she stood by, watching the two, the realization hit like a punch to the gut.

Naruto and Tenten had gotten together. No, more than that, they seemed to truly love each other.

It didn't make any sense and she didn't mean their relationship.

She hadn't said more to Tenten than how she wanted to make up for her old attitudes toward the blond so it wasn't like Tenten had _actually_ _betrayed_ her or anything; Naruto was on the market and the brunette seemed to have swooped in before anyone else could.

If anyone had a right, fleeting though it might be, to feel upset, it should have been Hinata.

Her emotions made no sense.

She practically crashed through her front door shaky hands just _barely_ managing to get the keys in before she staggered in. The sour feeling in her belly had begun to metamorphose, drawing into itself and growing colder until all she could feel was the small ball of ice that was in turn, slowly numbing her.

She didn't even bother with her clothes as she slammed into her bed.

Her pillow grew wet with tears.

‹‹‡››

 _ **And aw~ay we go!**_

 _ **The official start of shippuden, the 'Arrival' arc here, sees Naruto's public return to Konoha with the trio of Sakura, Ino and Tenten acting as the welcoming committee.**_

 _ **Here we see that Ino seems to have some really messed up issues regarding Naruto for some reason (to be fair, she realized that she had been a bitch to a guy who ALREADY had a shitty life) while Naruto seems weaned off Sakura-itis (I actually like shippuden but for the purposes of the fic…)**_

 _ **Regarding Hinata's absence: it had nothing to do with my dislike of her character; Naruto's return was only agreed upon between himself and Tsunade about eighteen hours ago (in-story time) and Sakura only knew because Tsunade told her. Ino knew because Sakura told her and, rather than blab, Ino struggled to make a decision, hence no one else knowing.**_

 _ **Now, regarding a review over a past chapter: I understand that you might be feeling a bit annoyed by the constant delays regarding the lemons however I feel things should flow into the story rather than just cause jarring breaks. While I could have shown the lemon between Tenten and Naruto, I didn't because I felt that it would lead to a pointless repetition by the time I got to Kurotsuchi's scene. Lemons WILL crop up, in fact, they will become more frequent now that I've got Mira and Erza hanging around and the harem slowly but surely grows.**_

 _ **Next up: meeting the powers that be.**_

 _ **Alright, guys, please leave me tons of reviews and once again show some love for moi beta, greenhorn000123.**_

 _ **Later.**_


	23. Konoha: Chapter 22

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 22**

Naruto had expected a number of things upon his 'return' to the village but a meeting with an Elder, the Jōnin Commander and the Hokage wasn't one of them.

Well, he wasn't expecting the first two.

"Shimura-dono, Nara-sama, Hokage-sama." He greeted formally, bowing as soon as his 'retainers' closed the door behind them. "I am honored to be in your presence."

"Genin Uzumaki, welcome back." Tsunade spoke as he rose, his back straight and his arms clasped behind him. "I trust your training went well?"

"As well as it could, Hokage-sama." He hedged, unsure of how else to answer with the Elder staring unblinkingly at him. "Working around Jiraiya-sama's schedule often made things… hard."

"Understandable." Shikaku Nara, the jōnin commander shrugged lazily. "I suppose you took every opportunity provided to improve yourself?"

"Yes, Nara-sama."

"You have yet to introduce us to your… acquaintances, Genin."

It was Danzō's first comment since the meeting had begun and the man's dry voice seemed utterly disinterested in anything.

Naruto was certain that it was a ploy designed to catch people off guard.

"To my left is Erza Scarlet while on my right is Mirajane Strauss. They swore their lives to me when I saved them from a bandit's camp a few months ago."

"Are they trained in any forms of combat?"

"I am not, Shimura-dono, though Erza-san is skilled with a blade." Mira stated, sticking to their cover stories.

The Elder nodded. "You should train your retainers more, Uzumaki. In certain circles, offense may be taken should a retainer speak when a question is directed at their lord."

Naruto bowed. "Thank you for your advice, Shimura-dono."

"Now, onto another point so we don't spend the whole day here." Tsunade continued. "How would you rank yourself, Genin, in terms of each of your skills?"

"I am, perhaps, not the best judge of such, Hokage-sama." He replied after a moment of thought. "However, as you have asked, I will rate myself thus:

"In genjutsu, I am no better than my rank as I was not overly trained I the art of casting illusions. I can, however, break illusions of up to B-ranked levels.

"In ninjutsu, I am perhaps at the level of a Tokubetsu jōnin.

"In taijutsu-"

"Hokage-sama, I propose that we simply test Genin Uzumaki in a combat scenario to better determine for ourselves how skilled he has become." Shikaku cut in. "Surely it would be better than simply asking him."

"I concur with Nara-san's proposal." Danzō added. "It would be better analyzing his performance than listening to his opinion of himself."

"Of course Nara-san, Shimura-san." Tsunade nodded. "I simply wanted to know how he saw himself, use that as a base template before we headed into his test. Would tomorrow at nine suffice?"

"It will." Turning to the blond Danzō spoke. "We will send for you, Uzumaki, and you will know your opponent when you arrive."

"Understood, Shimura-san. By your leave, Hokage-sama."

"Good day genin."

Naruto bowed to the three and, with a sharp turn, left the Hokage's office.

‹‹‡››

Naruto, Mirajane decided as they walked to his old apartment, had the enduring patience of a saint.

There was no other explanation for why the blond still gave a damn about Konoha when she had, within the fifteen minutes it had taken them to walk to his neighborhood, pictured the utter annihilation of the place.

'To be fair, I _am_ a queen… maybe I'm just not used to being glared at?' She mused as he led them up the stairway in the dilapidated building that he lived in.

She laughed to herself at the thought; being one of Kyuubi's guardians and one of the top generals in the war, Zalhim's forces had hated her with a passion and she had received her share of hateful glares.

The difference was, she had deserved those glares; they might have been her enemies during the war but she would readily admit that the things she had done had helped her _earn_ those glares.

Naruto's only sin was that he was the son of an honorable man who chose to sacrifice his own son rather than place the burden upon another man's child.

Her respect for her new found mate grew once again.

"Well, Mira, welcome to my humble abode." The blond finally spoke as he unlocked a cracked and warped door and walked into a surprisingly clean apartment. "It's a bit small and we're going to feel cramped for a while-"

"Not to worry, Naruto-sama." She smiled as she took in the simply furnished living room. "I'm sure we can fit into the bed regardless of its size."

It was a testament to how much more relaxed the blond had become around her that he simply laughed at the comment and waved her toward the room to have a look herself and it brought a small smile to her lips that the blond was able to laugh so easily even after all this village had put him through.

"So Mira," His voice drifted over from the living room and she walked out of the bedroom to join him on the old but well maintained sofa he was sitting on. "What did you think about Baa-chan?"

It took a moment for her to put a name to the face. "The Hokage right?" When he nodded, she continued, "Well, she seems okay. For a village that went through an invasion attempt… three years ago?"

"Give or take a year."

"Well, the village seems pretty stable from what I've seen; few shabbily dressed people, not too many lowlife types… She must be a decent leader if nothing else." She shrugged. "She's also a powerful woman; decent energy levels, could be a threat if she's skilled enough and intelligent enough to use it. A bit vain though."

The last comment drew a look from him. "Vain? How so?"

"The glamour she's keeping up… You said she's about the same age as the Pervert? Well then, unless she's got a decent amount of non-human blood in her… maybe nymph or even succubi blood, then she's definitely faking that appearance."

The blond whistled appreciatively. "Nice deduction."

"I'm not just a pretty face you know." She mock-glared at him before asking for the whereabouts of her 'fellow retainer'.

"They're still roaming the market district for a few more items on the list, why?"

Mira's look turned downright predatory as she swiftly moved to straddle him, sky blue eyes staring into cerulean as her hair cascaded around her face. "I'm hungry."

"Well then… I shouldn't deny you a meal now should I?" Naruto grinned as he wrapped a hand round her waist while the other gently rested on her neck and guided her down to lock lips in a loving kiss that took their breaths away.

And then her hands shot down to the buckle of his pants as she broke away from the kiss, a feral grin on her face as her pupils elongated into slits. "Much as I love the tender stuff… I'm a bit too hungry to wait."

Naruto struggled to repress a moan as his pants disintegrated at her touch, the Demon masterfully utilizing one of her many forms to get what she wanted. With his cock now out in the open, she decided to get playful and dismounted, much to his spluttering disapproval.

That didn't last long.

Moving to an unheard beat, Mirajane began a slow dance for him, moving her body in ways that had him sweating before she even took off her blouse. It was an utterly erotic sight as the Succubi Queen brought to bear a string of impossible sexy moves, alternating from pulse pounding, hip swaying, shakes to slow, sensual twirls and acrobatic stretches, each transition punctuated by the removal of yet another piece of clothing.

Finally, the silent dance came to an end, the white haired woman timing her moves to ensure that she ended up on all fours, right between his legs, his shaft towering above her.

"I _never_ get tired of pleasing this monster." She whispered as she took his cock in her hand and began stroking it, her soft hands moving in gentle yet firm strokes. "Oh, I can't wait to introduce you to the girls."

Naruto, mind swimming in pleasure, was only barely able to keep track of her words as she took him right down her throat. "G-girls?"

Mira's eyes watered as her lips formed a seal around the base of his cock and held him I her throat until, with a slurp and a pop, she pulled off him and resumed beating him off. "Gods you taste good!" She exclaimed, sucking in gulps of air before going down on him again, repeating the cycle for the next ten minutes, always keeping him on the edge but never letting him come.

"Are you two going to be done anytime soon?"

The shock of hearing Erza's stern, disapproving voice drew Naruto's attention like a magnet, pulling his head away from the fog of ecstasy that Mira had wound around him.

"Erza?"

"Yes, Mira?"

"You have two choices." The Succubus glared at her fellow guardian as she absently stroked her future king's _rod_. "Either get over here and get in on this or get out."

"Carry on then." Erza shrugged, even though she wanted nothing more than to dash over, pull the white haired demon away and take Naruto herself but she restrained herself. It wouldn't do to lower herself to the slut's level after all. "I'll leave you to your… feeding."

Mira's eyes narrowed dangerously. She knew Erza, knew her like the back of her hand, and she could read the redhead like a book. For all their friendship-slash-rivalry, Mira knew that Erza tended to take the higher ground in regards to matters of sex even though the vixen was every bit the slut _she_ was when she really let herself go.

It was time, Mira decided, for Naruto to know _precisely_ who the Knightwalker was beneath all that stuffy armor.

With little more than a thought, she unleashed the full might of her allure, the sudden surge of lust bringing the Knightwalker to her knees.

The average succubus, with her allure unleashed, can ensnare the equivalent of twenty chūnin; more powerful succubi can ensnare even kage. An arch-succubus can easily ensnare most high-class demons.

Mira had, on three separate occasions, ensnared Kyuubi.

Or, put simply, Erza stood no chance; by the time the initial blast of lust had cleared, she was running on primal instinct.

With speed rivaling teleportation, the redheaded vixen appeared before Naruto, her clothes shed and his cock already halfway down her throat.

If Mira was surprised or even upset at this new development, she didn't give even the slightest hint. Instead, the Succubi Queen threw her head back and laughed throatily. "Ara? It looks like the oh-so-mighty Knightwalker has finally given in to her baser urges. How shameful."

Neither Naruto nor Erza seemed to care; the blond had thrown his head back as he struggled to stave off his impending orgasm while the redhead simply attacked her lover's shaft, her head bobbing in a blur of motion as she furiously worked his shaft.

Sidling up to him, Mira took hold of Naruto's shoulders and began to massage them while whispering into his ear… "Isn't she beautiful, Naruto-sama? The mighty Knightwalker, abasing herself before you, worshiping your magnificent body… Mm, look at her body, Naruto-sama, one of the most lusted after in all of Makai and it's all here for you… Waiting for you to claim it…"

Her words were almost hypnotic, drawing out a part of himself that he never knew existed, fanning the flames she had already kindled into a blazing inferno.

" _Take her, Naruto-sama! Fuck this foxy slut until she's little more than a receptacle for your cum!"_

Every form of restraint disintegrated as the old, reticent Naruto essentially wilted away and his very aura seemed to change as a new Naruto sprang forth.

It was time to take charge.

His right hand dropped into Erza's scarlet tresses, massaging her head gently, encouragingly, before bunching into a fist and forcing her head down, bucking his hips in the same instant such that her throat had no choice but to take his dick all the way down.

At the same time, the shinobi reached up to grab hold of Mira before yanking her down, his mouth colliding with hers in a rough, utterly dominant kiss that left the succubus reeling.

" _I'm in charge here, Mira."_

The absolute confidence in his words all but turned her knees to jelly.

Down below, Erza's teary eyes are locked onto his face, her lungs burning with a need for air but her body unwilling to go against his desires. The possessive gleam in his eyes sent bolts of lust through her body and had her writhing with need.

With an almost disdainful shove, he pushed Mirajane away while pulling Erza off his cock, allowing her to -finally- draw breath. "Did you enjoy yourself?" He asked, smiling at the still gasping redhead.

"I-I'm fine, Naruto-s-Ah!" Erza gasped as he held her by the waist and lifted her until she was seated astride him, her sopping cunt pushing down on his cock until it was laid horizontally between her thighs.

"You are?" He arched his eyebrow questioningly before smiling mischievously. "Well then, you won't mind simply resting here would you?"

It took a few moments for her pleasure-addled mind to grasp the meaning of his words but then it hit her with all the force of a moving juggernaut: he wanted her to ask for it, to ask for _him_. Mira's allure might have manipulated her as the Succubi Queen desired but now he wanted her to _plead_ for the pleasure that only he could give.

"Naruto-sama… I-" She had to stop; look away from those calm, piercing eyes and take a breather even as her body shuddered. She could see it in his eyes: a verbal plea would not be enough; she had to _mean it_ , to beg him with her body and soul as much as she did with her words.

Erza shuddered again as she began to move; a gentle, rolling of her hips that had her grinding onto his rock-hard shaft. It was a novel experience for her and, after getting over the initial surge of shyness, she couldn't help but stare at him, seeking approval of some sort.

The relaxed smile on his face threw her off at first but then she saw the faint lines at the corners of his eyes, the tense way he clenched his jaw shut and, placing a hand on his chest, she felt his slightly elevated heart rate and the all the anxiety, the doubts… they all faded away as her confidence came surging back, her hips grinding into him with renewed vigor even as she leaned forward until their noses were nearly touching.

" _I need you, Naruto-sama."_

His smile grew just the tiniest bit as his hands came up to fondle her breasts, squeezing, tweaking and pulling on her jiggling mounds, each touch sending shocks of pleasure running amok through her system, pushing her desire to greater heights, creating a spiraling cycle of pleasure that had her desperately crying out for him until she collapsed onto his chest, exhausted.

" _Please, Naruto-sama."_ Her voice was little more than a hoarse whisper now, burdened with desperate need. _"Please."_

His silent demand now met, he was all too willing to fulfill her heart's desire; lifting her hips gently, he adjusted himself and got himself into position to screw her brains out. "Are you ready, Erza-chan?"

"Always, Naruto-sam-AH!" The redheaded vixen threw her head back as her back arched forward, pressing her stiff nipples into his chest and damn near cumming on the spot.

Never before had she felt such a burst of raw, satisfying, pleasure erupt through her very core with a single penetration! And he had only just begun!

From her spot by the couch, Mira's eyes were wide open in shock, awe and a metric fuck-ton of lust.

When she whispered those words to him, she fully expected him to come out of his shell; to leave behind the few straggling thoughts that kept him from _truly_ reaching his optimum in the sack.

She had not, however, anticipated such a complete change.

From a young man who had simply participated in the threesome with Kyuubi all those days ago to this: a dominant figure that was so comfortable being in charge that Erza had become putty in his hands.

Her skin grew flushed as her eyes rolled in pleasure; the sight of Naruto pounding Erza into a fucked up mess was almost as big a turn-on as pleasuring him!

Erza was in a whole new realm of pleasure; Naruto's cock was so large, so… _fucking_ _ **fat**_ that every time he pumped into her cunt he seemed to brush against every last nerve ending in her pussy, sending spots of ecstasy exploding through her mind. She couldn't even speak clearly any more, her slack jawed expression only capable of a constant moan.

Naruto's hips were a blur of motion, his balls sending drops of her oozing fuck lube splattering everywhere as he fucked her with a single-minded determination.

Erza's moans grew louder and louder as her orgasm approached. She didn't care that they might be overheard, didn't give a flying fuck what they thought; her whole body was a mass of roiling ecstasy. She ran her hands up and down Naruto's strong arms, felt his perfectly toned biceps and his muscular back. She held onto him tightly, lost in euphoric bliss and finally found her voice.

"Oh fuck Naruto-sama!" She wailed as her pussy clamped down on him like a vice, his movement grinding to a halt.  
"I'm cumming! Master, I'm cumming!"  
As Naruto rammed into her, the beautiful woman screamed out her pleasure, clinging to him with all her might. Her mind went blank and a full-body orgasm exploded like fireworks inside her. Eyes squeezed shut, every muscle in Erza's body tensed as if electrified.  
Naruto took the opportunity to catch his breath as Erza collapsed onto him. Any exertion or sense of fatigue was swiftly replaced by the pleasurable sensation of her pussy muscles quivering around his dick. "That must have been some orgasm, eh Erza-chan…?" He mused with a smile aimed at the practically insensate girl on his chest.  
"I'm afraid _Erza-chan'_ s out of commission." Mira purred as she crawled up to him, pushing Erza off his chest as she went. "But I'm pretty sure _I_ might be able to… satisfy you…"

‹‹‡››

 _ **And here's the next one.**_

 _ **Naruto's back and the top guns of Konoha want to see what he's got!**_

 _ **Also: lemon.**_

 _ **That is all.**_

 _ **Please gimme those reviews! I needs them!**_


	24. Konoha: Chapter 23

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 23**

'Poor turnout.' Naruto thought as he gazed around Training Ground Zero, the Hokage's exclusive training field and the venue of his test. 'I'd expected larger numbers.'

' _Well look who's stroking his own ego.'_ Kyuubi smirked from the depths of his mind, taking in the sights through their connection. _'Weren't_ you _the one that was worried about too many people seeing your current skill level?'_

'That might be true but come on!' He whined as he waved to Tenten and Sakura, the final arrivals for the day. 'I thought I'd warrant at the very least an audience of thirty!' He didn't even have _half_ that figure; Tsunade, Danzō and Shikaku were the only council members present, each representing an arm of Konoha's Shinobi Supervisory body. Standing to their sides were Kakashi, Jiraiya and Gai, likely playing bodyguard (it would explain why Kakashi wasn't late _again_ ) and Asuma, Kurenai, a purple haired beauty that he didn't recognize and a blank-faced man with a face plate resembling that of the Nidaime completed the set.

Twelve people. And that was only because he'd convinced Tsunade that Sakura (being his teammate) and Tenten (who had already seen him in action) should be permitted to watch.

He wasn't a proud person per se but dammit! The village's jinchūriki deserved a larger audience for his first bout following an intense training session!

' _You're really ticked off about this hmm?'_ Kyuubi asked, her amusement plain in her tone.

'Damn right I am.' He features flashed into a scowl before settling back into the mildly interested look he'd kept plastered on for the past couple of minutes.

' _Whatever. Just don't embarrass me out there.'_

'What, no 'you must WIN!' speeches?'

' _No; it's your decision whether to fight to win or just to impress.'_ She replied. _'After all, you_ have _expressed an interest in concealing your true skill level. Whatever your decision is, therefore, is up to you.'_ Then, the Queen of Makai smirked within the cage. _'Just don't pull another 'F-bomb Special' a la the Chūnin Exam prelims.'_ And, with that parting shot, she pulled back from their connection, preventing verbal (well, she amended, _mental_ ) communication while ensuring that she could still see the world as he did.

Naruto's eye twitched upon hearing the Queen's parting shot and he nodded almost imperceptibly. 'Well played, Kyuubi-chan, very well played indeed.'

He'd get her back; that much was certain, but right now, he needed to get his head in the game.

He closed his eyes, took in a deep breath… and then opened them, exhaling as he did.

The changes were subtle but they were there; his normally expression-filled eyes became cold chips, his muscles began to flex in preparation for the fight but most of all, _his mind focused on the task at hand._

'My most likely opponents are Asuma-sensei, Kurenai-sensei and the two unknowns. Gai-san and Kakashi-sensei are elites; they are likely present more to act as bodyguards should something go wrong than to be my opponents. The same applies to Jiraiya as well as the Big Three.' He deduced, all of Jiraiya's efforts at beating sense into his skull now rewarding him. 'If I recall correctly, Asuma-sensei's a ninjutsu expert with an equally broad depth of taijutsu styles while Kurenai-sensei's Konoha's foremost genjutsu practitioner. Plus, with her chakra-control undoubtedly being pretty high up there then she might be the medic. And if Ino's gossip all those years ago held any weight then I've gotta watch out for a potential Asuma-Kurenai combo.'

He paused, glanced around to confirm that the Big Three plus Jiraiya were still talking before moving on to the other two. 'The purple-haired woman… Never seen her around, never seen her face in the bingo book… Likely ANBU then. Her sword's on her back rather than by her side so she's likely a very agile fighter up close. Maybe a bit of skill with high end ninjutsu. Blank-face though… Dammit, I can't get a read on the guy. Maybe a water user, with the face plate-thing? Gonna have to keep an eye on- Ah. Looks like we're ready to begin.'

He was bang on the money with that guess; the Big Three had broken up and Shikaku was now walking toward the center of the clearing, about fifty meters from him.

"Alright. Genin Uzumaki, following your training at the hands of the Legendary Toad Sage, Jiraiya, you stand before us to show the results of the past three years." The lazy-looking man turned to stare at him and Naruto instantly recognized the sheer intellect lying behind those dark eyes, one he had only ever seen in the eyes of his Nara classmate, Shikamaru. "Are you ready?"

Naruto met those eyes with steely determination. "I am."

The Nara nodded. "Very well then. Your opponents today will be Sarutobi Asuma, Yūhi Kurenai and Uzuki Yūgao."

'One less than I'd anticipated. Still, it wouldn't do to forget Blank-face.' Naruto thought.

"Your objective, Genin, is to prove that your past three years haven't been wasted." Shikaku continued, sounding every bit as lazy as the stereotype. "However you choose to do so remains in your hands. Got that?"

"Absolutely."

"Alright then." Shikaku shrugged as he started the troublesome walk over to join the Three. "On my signal."

Naruto watched as his opponents stepped forth, Kurenai trailing just a few inches behind the two on both sides.

Asuma seemed confident as he slipped on a pair of knuckle-duster/kunai hybrid weapons, Kurenai seemed as cool and collected as ever and the ANBU, Yūgao, already had a hand on the sheathe of her blade.

"Begin!"

Naruto was past Asuma and Yūgao before the word's echo died out, his body twisting as he lashed out with a vicious kick aimed at Kurenai's head.

The woman's genjutsu was well-known in the shinobi world, held at a degree of esteem just a hair lower than an Uchiha's or a member of the Kurama clan.

She needed to go first.

Battles were fickle, though, and battle plans rarely went a hundred percent as prepared for.

The raven haired woman ducked beneath the kick and twisted around the follow up elbow strike that would have left her a drooling mess on the ground had he connected. At the same time, her hands were together as she blitzed through a sequence of twenty handseals in a heartbeat.

"Genjutsu: Hi no-"

"Fūton: Daitoppa!"

Naruto's jutsu exploded forward like a rocket, aimed not at Kurenai but at the ground beside her. The resulting blast wave threw the raven-haired woman a few feet back, leaving her concentration (ergo her jutsu) broken but otherwise unhurt.

It was a small win.

The sound of the wind screaming as a blade sliced through reached his ears and he immediately switched out with a twig two feet to his right…

Only to have to switch out again, further away this time thanks to Asuma's blades hunt for his blood.

The two parties eyed themselves warily, each now more cautious than ever.

"First blood goes to us, kid." Asuma finally broke the silence with an easy-going grin even as Naruto's eyes narrowed. "You gotta keep up."

He could feel it; the sensation of liquid rolling down his cheek.

Blood. _His_ blood.

It was time to kick things up a notch.

Dashing forward again, he sped toward Asuma before breaking off and heading for Yūgao, a kunai slipping into each hand as he channeled his wind chakra into the blades, his senses working overtime to point out discrepancies in the environment that would hint at a genjutsu.

By the time they had exchanged ten strikes, Naruto could tell that the purple haired sword-woman was better than him in pure skill. It didn't matter that he was as fast as she was _and_ dual-wielding; the woman had been able to negate his advantages by maintaining a strong yet fluid defense that had her parrying his attacks rather than blocking, forcing him to expend more energy to correct his movements and giving her more room to try slipping past his guard.

She was no Erza (and very _few_ could reach or -heavens forbid!- _surpass_ the Knightwalker) but she was _very_ good.

She very nearly succeeded at slipping past his defenses about fifteen seconds and almost sixty exchanges later: he had been holding his own until, abruptly, the blade that was coming at him from the left suddeny switched positions and swung at him from the _right._ It was only due to his honed instincts that he held up his guard in the same position, feeling her blade clash against his kunai with a screeching of tortured metals.

Knowing that his eyes were -literally- deceiving him, he focused on his ears -and promptly pulled off a perfect split to avoid Asuma's blade scoring a second hit.

This time, he twisted, lashing out and taking Yūgao's knee as went before rolling back and kipping up to his feet, staggering his chakra flow for a split second, thus dispelling the genjutsu.

'And that's why I wanted to take Kurenai out.' He scowled as he watched his opponents come together in an inverse triangle formation, one more protecting the genjutsu mistress. 'Her genjutsu makes things a lot more difficult.'

Suddenly, his internal alarms blared as his ears picked up the sound of a blade being swung ad he instantly cartwheeled away from the spot.

'What the-? Kurenai again?!' He wondered as he surrendered to his gut instinct and began exchanging blows with foes he couldn't see while forcing himself to ignore the images of his opponents flying at him from various angles. 'Of course! They are **all** jōnin level ninja! They'd have a few genjutsu of their own under their belts!'

The realization brought a whole new level of complexity to the battle. Fighting three jōnin was an issue but fighting all three when each was capable of trapping him within layers of illusions?

It was time for a new tact.

Ducking beneath a slash of an invisible blade, he gathered his chakra and let it go in a burst of energy that shattered the genjutsu around him. Now able to see clearly, he focused on the forested area of the training field and, as Yūgao's blade swung for his neck, he switched out.

Safely ensconced in the shade of the trees, Naruto knew that he had less than half a minute to execute his plan and instantly summoned seven clones. Two vanished into the foliage, two grabbed a pair of kunai from his pouch while the last three turned into miniature copies of themselves and crawled into each of the remaining Narutos' pockets.

Outside the forest, Asuma, Yūgao and Kurenai were deliberating.

"If we go in after him, we run the risk of trying to take him out on his home turf." The sword-woman frowned. "He's not known as the Prankster King for nothing."

"And normally, I would agree with that assessment, Yūgao, but right now we **need** to get him out of there and the longer we delay, the more the time he has to set up whatever he needs." Kurenai argued. "We'd end up prolonging things unnecessarily."

"Yūgao, Kurenai's right. We need to get him out of there, get things back on our turf, and the longer we delay, the more the time he has to cook up something _really_ nasty." Asuma stated, his eyes focused on the forest before them. "Besides, we're jōnin are we not?"

"He was catching ANBU captains as an eleven year old." The purple-haired woman stated deadpan.

"They weren't out for his blood." Asuma rejoined, his tone chilly. "Let's go."

With that, the three jōnin disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

‹‹‡››

The moment Asuma and his team disappeared, Tsunade caught her teammate shaking his head. "What's wrong?"

"In all the time I've fought him, even way back at the beginning of our training, I've learned the hard way that you don't fight the Prankster King from Hell in his home turf." The white-haired sage replied seriously. "He has never defeated me in there but that's only because I've got a shit-ton of experience."

"Surely you exaggerate." Danzō frowned. "He cannot be that good."

"I'm afraid Jiraiya-sama is right, Shimura-dono." Kakashi shrugged, his nose buried in his favorite piece of literature. "After a few times of Naruto and I sparring, I had to limit our spars to open spaced combat only. He excels at guerrilla tactics like nobody I've ever seen."

"It's actually not that much of a surprise." Shikaku shrugged lazily, drawing everyone's attention. "We tend to forget but Uzumaki Naruto, even as an Academy student, was able to design traps and complex systems that simply humiliated those who fell into them. My son and I discussed this and, while his pranks may have seemed childish and humorous, many ignore the sheer potential in those pranks."

For the first time since her arrival with Tenten, Sakura seemed stunned. "Excuse me, Nara-sama, but what do you mean?"

The Nara clan head sighed and began his explanation. "Think of it this way, Haruno-san; as an Academy student, Naruto pulled a prank on the Inuzuka that resulted in nearly half their numbers being unable to engage in active service. How? By spreading a specific chemical mix over a large area of their clan quarters. Now, imagine if they were a rival clan and had used a deadly toxin. In a single night, half of a rival clan's forces would have died out.

"Or think of the times he was on the run from shinobi of various levels; over the years, he grew so skilled at evading them that, by the time he graduated from the Academy, he had a ninety-two percent chance of evading capture by any shinobi lower than an experienced jōnin. How did he do it? An extensive knowledge of his environment, coupled with relatively simplistic traps like tripwires, false boards and more. So imagine if he had wanted to kill his pursuers; switch the tripwire with a garrote, place the false boards over vats of acids etcetera."

"But Iruka-sensei always seemed to catch him!" Sakura argued.

"Indeed; Chūnin Umino _did_ have the highest chance of catching Naruto after a prank but that was only due to two factors. In the first place, Umino Iruka was quite the accomplished prankster himself as an Academy student. He understood the mind of a prankster better than most." Shikaku yawned. "Excuse me. Anyhow, the second reason was a more personal one: he understood the mind of Uzumaki Naruto better than anyone bar perhaps the Sandaime. Naruto was often rejected and isolated as a child, another thing Iruka understood, and so his pranks were less of a rebellion and more of a cry for attention. Iruka understood that, could place himself in Naruto's shoes and so was able to figure out where Naruto would be more often than not."

The reminder that her teammate had suffered a great deal of rejection sobered Sakura up, especially when she remembered how she had treated him.

" _He was treated like trash, Sakura! Treated like he was_ less than human _! And_ **we** _were a part of that!_ _ **I**_ _was a part of that!"_

Ino's drunken rant six months ago flashed through her mind and a wave of grief surged in her mind. 

The conversation continued while the pink haired girl wrestled with her emotions.

"I want you all to recall what was arguably his greatest prank: the desecration of the Hokage monument."

A few of the gathered shinobi shared a laugh at the reminder until Shikaku continued.

"It seems funny doesn't it; an Academy student painting over the village's greatest monument and nobody seemed to notice." Shikaku shook his head and scoffed. "I spoke to Genryu Takaeda, one of the demolitions experts, after Orochimaru's failed invasion attempt and his response was chilling: given a few hundred pound of explosive notes and Uzumaki's skill, we wouldn't _have_ a Hokage Monument."

All traces of humor vanished from their faces.

"Imagine that; on the day of the invasion, while the Ichibi rampaged and the summoned snakes ripped through the village, an earth shaking rumble, a flash of light and, before your eyes, the very symbol of the village crumbles.

"Inoichi told me that, had things happened that way, the sheer despair such an event would have caused would have resulted in about sixty percent of our forces simply losing all hope. Of the remaining forty percent, only ten percent would have fought with a renewed vigor and that ten percent would never have been enough on their own."

The scenario that the jōnin commander had just painted all but froze their blood.

‹‹‡››

Within the forest, Asuma was seriously regretting his decision to engage their target within, as Yūgao called it, his 'home turf'.

Never mind the fact that fighting in the forest was already more complicated due to the constantly shifting shadows, now he had to deal with a jōnin-level shinobi who was coming at him from all angles with a vengeance _while dealing with an ungodly amount of traps!_

The Sarutobi had never appreciated his time with the Guardians more than he did now because without the skills he had acquired from the monks and other ninja in the group, he was pretty damned certain that he would have been beaten already.

Not five seconds after entering the forest, he had been doused with a highly potent itching powder that should have had him rolling on the ground, desperate to get rid of the itch if Chiruku hadn't taught him to subject his body's reactions to his will. Even then, the constant desire to _**Scratch God-dammit!**_ was playing havoc on his concentration.

Then, mid-way through his first engagement with his target, the blond had abruptly ducked in the middle of a complex kata, leaving jōnin open to get right between the eyes hit by a stream of an irritant of some kind, taking away his sight and forcing him to rely on Tamamo's tips on fighting blind.

On and on it went; the blond striking out of the darkness like a skilled ANBU, forcing him on the back foot for a few moments and then, whenever he seemed to get a bead on the blond to string together attacks of his own, the boy slipped away and a new trap was waiting.

Finally, after ducking a falling log and the follow up trio of -likely poisoned- senbon, the jōnin decided that he'd had enough and he swiftly pulled out via a shunshin.

"He got you good huh?"

Eyes still streaming, the Sarutobi was only able to identify the speaker by her voice: Yūgao.

"Okay, I fucking admit it." He scowled, though the expression was ruined by the tears. "He's a damned monster at guerilla tactics. Is Kurenai here?"

"Nope." The purple haired ANBU replied as she shifted to stand back-to-back with him. "Judging by how he's been trying to take her out all this time, I'd say he might just have succeeded."

Just then, the trees rustled wildly before a veritable horde of blonds rushed out.

"If he's got her then all bets are off." Asuma growled as he sped through handseals. "Katon: Gōkakyū!"

Yūgao, realizing his intent as soon as he had started speaking, spun to face the horde, completing her own handseals as well. "Fūton: Daitoppa!"

The gust of wind, while not as powerful as Naruto's earlier, was more than enough to turn Asuma's flamethrower into a directed inferno.

The Naruto horde were not about to be taken down, though, and the six clones leading the charge instantly completed a set of handseals. "Suiton: Mizurappa!"

The inferno met the fused, high pressure water stream in a terrific clash, both techniques vying for dominance as a cloud of steam descended on the field.

Unfortunately for the Horde, their defense was sustained by a set of clones who had finite chakra. The Mizurappa, a B-rank technique, was chakra intensive and, one after the other, the clones vanished as they exhausted their limited reserves, allowing the flames to rip through unopposed.

Fortunately for Naruto, the clones only needed the defense for the initial few seconds.

Faster than he could react, Asuma found himself dragged into the ground.

The last thing he heard before being welcomed by darkness was a cheery "Good night, sensei!"

Yūgao, having felt Asuma's sudden disappearance from her side, instantly assumed the worst and created a shadow clone to take her place in the rapidly cooling steam while she flickered over to stand atop the tallest tree in the forested region, weaving layer upon layer of genjutsu to render herself unnoticeable.

She watched as her clone dispersed the cloud with a powerful gust of wind, revealing the net her blond opponent had created with his clones. If her clone intended to get out of there, one of the blonds -possibly the original- assured her, then it would have to fight its way out.

It was clear that the blond didn't realize that the being he was engaged with in combat was little more than a clone; he rushed in with the kind of speed, power and skill that she expected him to bring to bear against her, attacking with tight efficiency, perfectly in sync with his clones. It was only her years of experience that saved her -well, her clone- from being overwhelmed. It had switched from her preferred, offense-oriented fighting style to a more defense-oriented one, utilizing minimal motions to redirect his kunai, forcing him to attack himself as she made minute adjustments to her stance as was required.

It was by no means easy -the blond seemed to keep evolving as the fight progressed, forcing her clone to switch tactics and styles at random to keep ahead of him- but she was finally able to whittle his numbers down to just two clones from the dozen that had started the fight.

"You're pretty good, Yūgao-san." The pair spoke in stereo as they stalked the clone in opposing circles. "You're definitely a master swords-woman."

"You flatter me." Her clone replied with a beatific smile, not moving an inch. "However you are certainly a wonder yourself, Uzumaki-san."

"I suppose." The two blonds shrugged. "So, wanna finish this and get going?"

"If you're willing to surrender, yes."

"Well, in that case-" One of the duo blurred forward and locked blades with the clone, glaring into its eyes. "-I'm afraid we have a problem."

Yūgao's eyes flashed in shock. She had heard that last statement with her own ears which meant- She spun on a dime, raising her blade to intercept what would have been a vicious slash across her back.

"Your reaction time is incredible, Yūgao-san." He complimented, blue eyes gazing into hers, coolly confident. "However, I have the upper hand." His lips quirked upwards into a smirk. "After all, I _abuse_ the shadow clone technique."

Son of a-!

A blazing heat suddenly erupted behind her and she instantly switched away with the closest tree branch just as a set of memories hit her.

Her clone had lost.

It was a two on one fight now and he could summon reinforcements easily while her gamble had been as effective as shit.

She was down to about a quarter of her reserves thanks to her usage of the shadow clone and she was up against a jinchūriki, one of nine warriors known to be absolute chakra _generators._

When he reappeared before her, she fell to a knee, held her blade up to him and surrendered.

‹‹‡››

 _ **Basically a very combat oriented chapter, this goes to show Naruto's standing in the place of things:**_

 _ **After six months of vicious, hard-hitting, no-holds barred training, Naruto is clearly at jōnin level. He isn't on the level of Kakashi and Gai yet and is still a distance from the Sannin but he's getting there.**_

 _ **In the fight above, I did NOT nerf the three jōnin. I simply put them in a scenario where Naruto was able to utilize an oft-forgotten skill of his: his ingenious prankster mind.**_ _ **We see Naruto fight intelligently: he knows his skill at dispelling genjutsu may not be as high as to dispel some of Kurenai's more powerful ones so he tries to take her out first.**_ _ **Naruto then realizes, quite early into the fight, that he can't take the three of them on if they are together. So, he retreats to a safe haven and Asuma [who likely wasn't in the village during the Prankster King from Hell's reign of terror] chooses to head into the forest to smoke Naruto out. As is obvious, it didn't work out well for them.**_

 _ **Asuma made it out after being mercilessly harried and pranked, Kurenai**_ _ **didn't**_ _ **make it out and Yūgao, an ANBU who had experienced Naruto's pranking brilliance, made it out without a scratch and Naruto completes a brilliant, on the fly plan.**_

 _ **Hope this makes sense.**_

 _ **Now, those not concerned can head home and await the next chapter but for the NaruHina fans out there, I'd like to express my reason for essentially hating Hinata.**_

 _ **Look guys, I get it; via retro-active retcon, Kishimoto tells us that Naruto saved Hinata and thus the love blossomed or some such bull but lemme ask you this: if we all agree that Hinata stalked Naruto then that means she saw how he was treated. She saw how he lived. The fucking Princess of the Hyuga saw her 'wonderful Naruto-kun' getting snobbed, rejected, isolated, scorned and more, she saw him getting cheated, kicked out of stores and living in a pretty dilapidated building AND SHE COULDN'T EVEN SAY 'HI' TO HIM?! She adores his resilience and so, what, she gets off on seeing him suffer? Really? She 'likes' him but she doesn't extend an arm of friendship in the Academy to help get him through those lonely days?! Really?!**_

 _ **Sure, she was shy, sure her dad was [allegedly] an asshole (he seemed more like a militaristic father who wanted to toughen up his daughter rather than the hateful shit most NaruHina writers make him out to be) but she couldn't even spare Naruto a simple 'hello, Uzumaki-san, I enjoyed your prank yesterday' and you tell me she loves him? No, she was an obsessed, sadistic fuck who drew strength from watching him suffer.**_

" _ **But hey!" you cry, "Her dad told her not to associate with him!"**_

 _ **Bull. Fucking. Shit.**_

 _ **Shikamaru, Kiba and Choji [likely Shino as well but I'm a bit uncertain] had a decent acquaintance-level relationship with Naruto. That's three ninja families right there. Sure they weren't FRIENDS (kids learn to segregate based on the general perception of things and if the general populace treated Naruto like shit then they were less likely to be actual friends with him) but they acknowledged him even if it was a rivalry/trouble-making thing. Seeing as the Ino-Shika-Cho families are pretty tightly knit, I'd hazard a guess and say (based on her personality) that Io simply ignored Naruto because it was what all the cool kids were doing and she wanted to be the Diva of Cool.**_

 _ **Basically, the ninja families didn't seem to care about Naruto's status and I doubt that the Hyuga would have been different.**_

 _ **So really, fundamentally, Hinata's entire 'love' is fucking flawed and fake as all hell.**_

 _ **I won't go further here but if you wanna discuss then let's do so via PM or (for the Anons and guest reviewers out there) drop comments or questions in the reviews and I'll get to them as soon as I can.**_

 _ **Later guys.**_


	25. Konoha: Chapter 24

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 24**

Teuchi and his daughter shared worried glances yet again as their eyes drifted over to their favorite customer; their concentration split between completing the orders of their other patrons and worrying about the quiet, somber-looking blond.

Uzumaki Naruto had been on the same bowl of ramen for the past fifteen minutes.

Now, for most people, that wasn't odd; some waited because they weren't willing to scald their tongues on the boiling noodles, others had friends they were talking to… basically, the reasons were innumerable for other people.

For Naruto, the greatest proponent of the 'gospel of ramen', fifteen minutes was enough time to inhale upwards of a dozen bowls. In fact, there had been a running joke between the Ichirakus, Iruka and the Sandaime that the less Naruto ate within a fifteen minute period, the closer the apocalypse was.

One bowl in fifteen minutes though?

Something was really _really_ off.

Having served up the last trio of orders for the moment, Ayame walked over to him and placed a hand on his, drawing him out of whatever melancholic thoughts he had running about his mind.

"Ayame-nee?"

She smiled softly at him, leaning over the counter to bring her face closer to his. "Are you okay, Naruto-kun? You seem distracted."

He frowned for a second, wondering what she meant before his eyes fell on the unfinished bowl on the table. "Ah… Sorry, Ayame-nee, I guess I just got a little too busy in my own head."

"Ah. It does happen to the best of us." She replied before tugging at the newest piece of clothing on him; a chūnin jacket. "So, you didn't have this little accessory yesterday."

"Yeah… just got it today, actually." He replied, recalling that his clone had, in fact, stopped over at the ramen stand during its shopping trip with Erza. "Baa-chan felt that I deserved it."

'Understatement of the century!' He snorted mentally, recalling the scuffle that his performance had brought up before Danzō suggested a compromise.

‹‹‡››

 _ **FLASHBACK**_

"No one is suggesting that you aren't spot on with your assessment, Asuma." Tsunade stated calmly amidst the raging argument, feeling a nasty headache coming. "However, as Shikaku has already stated, jōnin status isn't handed out on a basis of strength alone. If that was the case there wouldn't be figures such as the famed Eternal Genin, Maito Duy, or the Eternal Chūnin, Shibasaki Mai. Hell, half our ANBU are jōnin-level chūnin.

"Jōnin are _leaders_ , Asuma, the field commanders of our forces. We can't just toss the rank to people just because they are powerful."

"I hear what you're saying, Hime, but I don't see the point." Jiraiya shot back, incensed. "I've watched Naruto, trained him to be who he is now and I've put a damned good amount of time into training him to become a leader. He has the mindset for it!"

"Enough."

The word, though soft-sounding, rang with a steely undertone that instantly demanded obedience.

Danzō was ready to speak.

"Now, it may be as you have said, Jiraiya, but we have seen no such evidence." The Elder intoned, his unwrapped eye seemingly skewering the Toad Sage by sheer force of will. "As such, especially considering his record in the eyes of the public, I agree with Nara-san and Uzuki-san. Uzumaki Naruto will _**not**_ be promoted to the ranks of jōnin _at this time._ "

The emphasis placed on the final phrase mollified the pro-promotion camp for the moment, allowing the Elder to continue.

"However, as Genin Uzumaki _has_ demonstrated the necessary skill level to earn a promotion to the rank of jōnin and is only hampered by his lack of leadership experience, I offer a compromise." He paused to ensure that all were listening before continuing. "Genin Uzumaki _will_ be promoted to the rank of chūnin. However, he will be given field missions classified for jōnin level shinobi of Konoha. He will be given teams of random shinobi for each mission with a jōnin assigned to observe him on these missions and to interfere **only** when the mission is at risk of failing." The Elder paused again, this time to gather a few thoughts before continuing. "After a set period, an analysis will be run on his mission reports, statistics and the reports of the assigned jōnin to determine his eligibility for the promotion.

"Is this acceptable?"

It took a few seconds for them to mull it over but, one after the other, they all agreed to his plan.

"We'll iron out the details by the end of the day." Tsunade stated, sealing the deal and the circle of jōnin broke up, revealing the huddled figures of Naruto and the younger kunoichi a distance away. She was just about to call to him when she noticed that Danzō had -somehow- already covered the distance and laid a hand on his shoulders.

Much to her consternation, the blond followed the Elder.

‹‹‡››

For the first few minutes, neither said a word as they walked away from the training field, Naruto trailing respectfully two steps behind and to the right of the Elder.

Then, just as he was about to speak, Danzō spoke.

"Much as I appreciate the formality, Chūnin Uzumaki, I asked you to walk _with_ me, not escort me."

Instantly, the blond quickened his pace to match that of the elderly shinobi. "My apologies, Danzō-sama, I-" Suddenly, the full weight of Danzō's words hit, nearly causing him to stumble. "Forgive me, Danzō-sama but- _chūnin_?"

"Did you think your performance unworthy of a promotion? Or did you think Konoha sought to deny you that which is rightfully yours?"

The rejoinder, calmly delivered, stunned him. Had he really gotten to the point where, subconsciously, he had prepared to hear of another stumbling block to his progress, put in place by the Village?

"It was an impressive showing," Danzō continued, "exhibiting the fruits of your training. Two of your opponents clamored for you to be promoted to the rank of jōnin, in fact, so impressed were they. It was an opinion shared by all but Hokage-sama, Nara-san, Uzuki-san and myself, though we do not doubt your prowess."

The revelation was an even bigger shocker: if what Danzō was saying was true then, after only _**six months**_ of intense training, he had gone from genin to jōnin! That was astounding! Yet…

"May I ask why I wasn't promoted to jōnin status directly?"

"You lack leadership experience, Uzumaki." Danzō replied bluntly. "And while Jiraiya vouches for you, the rest of us cannot which means that the shinobi forces _will_ not be inclined to accede to your decisions as a jōnin.

"You must remember, Uzumaki, that your status as a jinchūriki already leaves you vulnerable to character attacks by those who are biased against you. Add in your pranks as a child -enjoyable though they were- and you have most of the shinobi populace seeing you as either a child or a walking bomb."

The reminder stung him; Naruto had worked all his life toward gaining the respect, acknowledgement and acceptance of the people yet, to this day, it seemed that most of them would hate him needlessly.

"Hokage-sama will present you with your vest later on however I have a different reason for calling you out here." At this point, Danzō stopped in his tracks, gazing out into the horizon. The path they had taken was a hidden one that gently wound down beside the Hokage Monument, allowing those who walked it to, at various points, enjoy a stunning view of the Village, from the Hokage Tower all the way down to the gate and beyond.

They were at one such point and, while Naruto enjoyed the panoramic view, Danzō's eyes gazed upon a distant time…

"What is the wind to you, Uzumaki?"

The question, like most of the Elder's words, took Naruto by surprise.

"The _wind_ Danzō-sama?"

"Yes."

The blond had to ponder over the question for minutes before even attempting to give an answer. "The wind is… unending. In the hardest rocks, in the depths of the sea… the wind exists everywhere. Unending."

The Elder didn't indicate that he had heard a word of his response and for the next couple of minutes, the blond was forced to wait with bated breath.

"The wind is life… and the wind is death." Danzō said softly. "The wind fuels the flame into an inferno yet snuffs out the candle's light. None see the wind as it moves but in its wake, its effects are felt; a cooling breeze on a hot day or a terrible gale on a destructive night."

Silence descended again even as the Elder moved, Naruto keeping pace with him, both parties quiet until they reached another clearing, this one much closer to the Village.

"Shinobi are to be as the Wind, Uzumaki. Unseen yet felt; a source of strength to their allies, a terror to their foes." Danzō continued quite abruptly. "Yet, more than a simple bludgeoning tool, the wind cuts sharper than any blade."

The technique came out of nowhere; one second, the Elder was reminiscing, the next a slight distortion shot away from him toward the closest boulder.

The result was borderline terrifying: the boulder, nearly six feet thick and certainly over a ton in weight, was sheared through like it was little more than _**butter**_.

"That was a low powered technique of mine; the Shinkūha." Danzō continued as though he hadn't just tossed a technique that would have made swords everywhere bleed with envy. "Where Sarutobi whose to master all the elements, I chose to master one and, in doing so, created something… more.

"The Wind Style: Vacuum Techniques."

 _ **FLASHBACK ENDS**_

‹‹‡››

And that was the problem: Jiraiya had warned him of Danzō; he had, personally, run afoul of the Elder yet the very same Elder now offered him a chance to learn something damned near no one else knew; something a Sharingan wielder couldn't just copy and sling back at him without… _nasty_ side effects.

It was, he felt, a deal with a devil and he wasn't sure just how well his luck would hold out compared to the last time…

‹‹‡››

 _ **Nothing much happens here beyond a general overview of the aftermath of Naruto's performance; he's essentially a jonin in all but title now, we're just awaiting his leadership reports [I've seen too many fanfics where they just make him a jonin, ignoring the fact that jonin are essentially field commanders (Kakashi, Kitsuchi and Darui all being prime examples as seen in the FSW) and so must have a decent grasp of how to BE a leader].**_

 _ **The next chapter we'll probably skip around the Village a bit more to set things up before diving into the Kazekage Rescue mission.**_

 _ **Please review y'all.**_

 _ **Later.**_


	26. Konoha: Chapter 25

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 25**

"... she's still a bit hesitant but I think I should have cracked her in a few more days." Jiraiya answered confidently as he drenched the back of his neck, hair and all. He couldn't help the surge of pride that welled up in his chest before feeling it shrivel in shame.

He might have helped his godson improve over the past few months but he knew, deep within himself, that most of that progress was as a result of Kyuubi.

'And isn't _that_ irony at its finest.' He thought as he watched Naruto greedily gulp down his water. 'People feared him for Kyuubi's supposedly 'evil' influence yet the real reason he is where he is now boils down to her influence.'

"So I'll finally have access to the Archives." Naruto continued, oblivious of his sensei's thoughts. "That's good, yeah. I'll finally be able to chase that little conspiracy theory down, see if there's any merit to it."

"So what else do you have planned?"

"Nothing pending, really." Naruto shrugged. "I'm just more focused on training and getting past this observation period I've gotten myself stuck with."

The reminder of the compromise brought a scowl to the Sage's face. "I still think you should have gone straight up to jōnin."

"I think the old me would have agreed." The blond sighed as he sat on the grassy field. "Who I am now? With Danzō's training and the pointers he keeps giving? No, I can see what Baa-chan and the others meant; if being a jōnin was all about power and combat prowess then I _know_ I deserve the position. But it's more than that; it's more than even being able to draw people to my side of things. Being a leader means being responsible for other people's actions and inactions. The buck would stop with me as the leader and… well, I'm just glad I'm getting the observation period."

"If you say so kid." Jiraiya grunted. "So, how's the Old Fossil treating you?"

Naruto shrugged. "He's a decent teacher. A bit bland but he's good at what he does and is teaching me to get better."

"Really." The skepticism in the Sage's tone was overwhelming. "How so?"

"Well, we just started out two days ago so we've not gone beyond refinement yet. According to him, I'm only ready for the Vacuum style training when I'm able to pull off A-rank techniques with a single handseal so I've been working on smoothing rocks."

"Smoothing… rocks." Jiraiya paused. Then; "Sounds boring."

"Same thing I said before I realized just how difficult it is to take a random fist size rock and turn it into a shiny, river-edge pebble using just my wind chakra." Naruto laughed as he pulled out a pitted rock from his pouch. "This is the best I've gotten since I started."

The Toad Sage took the proffered rock and, upon closer observation, saw that the rock had undergone some changes; some areas were worn to sheer flatness while others looked like they had been sliced by wind blades and a spot or two seemed to shine like they had been polished. As comprehension dawned on him, his features seemed to go pale at the sheer complexity that the task required. His godson would essentially have to create a sphere of wind, similar to the _rasengan,_ which he would use to grind at the stone until it became smooth.

Jiraiya let loose a huge sigh. "That's… definitely not gonna be easy."

"You don't know the half of it, old man." Naruto laughed. "Now leave me alone; I've gotta get some rest before I head out later."

"Place to be?"

"Someone to see, actually." Naruto smiled softly, not giving the Sage a hint as to the mysterious person's identity.

"Ah… A secret liaison…" Jiraiya rubbed his hands eagerly. "I'll be getting the details later, right kid?"

"Fuck no you old perv! Now get going!"

Naruto sighed as the training field descended into silence, the only sounds being those of nature. _'So, any news?'_

Kyuubi, deep within her own thoughts, was startled by the question and needed a moment to play back his memories. _"Ah, well no, unfortunately."_ She sighed in frustration. _"Mira and I spent the night talking; even with her personally heading the search, none of her girls have heard a word about them."_

Naruto swore softly. _'So, the only Leaders we're certain about are Ichibi, Nibi and the Gobi?'_

" _As it stands."_ Kyuubi replied. _"And we can't even say we're 'certain' about two of them."_

' _Word on the street is that Kumo treats their jinchūriki well. It's unlikely that information wouldn't have slipped out if they suddenly went rogue.'_

" _And if their current hosts suddenly died?"_ Kyuubi asked and the blond couldn't provide an answer. _"No, we're only partially certain about those two."_

' _Which leaves us with five complete unknowns.'_ Naruto frowned as he slowly channeled wind chakra to ensconce the rock in his fist. The spherical shell of wind formed slowly but, after a few moments, the wind ball stabilized and he slowly turned the cutting power up. _'The closest of which, theoretically, is Nanabi-san.'_

" _Who we_ can't _see because there's no solid word as to the girl's whereabouts beyond 'somewhere in Taki.'"_ Kyuubi huffed. _"We need a network of our own."_

' _While I do agree with that, I'm afraid we just don't have access to those kind of resources right now. I'm hoping Yuki will have some positive news for me later but considering the fact that I just summoned her last night?'_

" _Patience is required."_ Kyuubi agreed. _"However-"_

"Naruto?"

The voice was so quiet- no, so _timid_ , _frightened_ \- that, were it not for Kyuubi's abrupt silence, he would have thought it a mere whisper on the wind. But Kyuubi had, indeed, gone silent and he swiftly pulled himself out of the depths of his mind to a sight he would never have dreamed in a million lifetimes.

Ino, shoulders shaking as quiet sobs escaped her mouth, face first on the ground, hands clasped together in a pleading gesture.

He didn't know what to do; his mind was overwhelmed by a flood of emotions and thoughts as his brain scrambled to pick a path of action.

Only once before had a person willfully prostrated themselves before him like this and while there had been a good reason for it, his entire world had been rocked by the information he had received.

Now Ino, one of the most prideful, willful people he had ever known, was repeating the very same action.

In the end, he saw only one viable option.

He fled.

‹‹‡››

When Tenten found him on the roof of Tsunade's old apartment, he was too deep within his own thoughts to even recognize her presence.

Knowing then that she had caught him in one of his vulnerable moments, the brunette simply walked up to him, knelt behind him and hugged him, resting her chin on his shoulder.

Neither moved for the first minute or so until he finally tilted his head toward her.

"I'm a fucking coward."

"No you aren't, Naruto. You're just as human as everyone else." Tenten rejoined, her tone soft yet firm. "You were faced with something you never saw coming and it shocked you and you ran. That's human."

"Yeah? Well I'm not exactly _human_ now am I?" He scoffed bitterly. " _The Power of Human Sacrifice._ I'm just a fucking animal offered up on the altar of our convoluted mess of a world-"

Keeping her hands firmly on his shoulders, Tenten pushed off the ground, flipped over his head and landed opposite him, her brown eyes blazing with an inner conviction he couldn't understand.

"Uzumaki Naruto you are **not** sub-human and this will be the _**last time**_ I hear you even **think** of yourself as such." She barked, leaving no room for disagreement. Then, after his meek nod, she continued in a much softer tone. "You are not sub-human, Naruto. If anything, you are **super** -human. You have been through things that should have left any other person a mere _husk,_ things that should have desensitized people to the very concept of emotions. Yet, here you are beating yourself up for what happened _because_ of your emotions.

"Yeah, you ran. Happens to the rest of us too, okay? The question now is… is that it?"

It was a profound question and it struck him deeply.

Was this it?

Was he willing to leave Ino hanging just because he had experienced a moment of weakness?

"No… no, that's not it."

Tenten's smile was radiant. "Then I think you should go find her. Talk to her. You never know; something beautiful could come out of this."

"Yeah…" He reached up and cupped her cheek in his hands before leaning in for a deep kiss. "You are a wonder, Tenten."

"Flattery will get you everywhere Blondie." She smiled as she rested her forehead on his. "Now go get her."

‹‹‡››

It hadn't taken long for him to find her; a horde of shadow clones with enhanced senses had cut down what should have taken tens of hours to just over one.

It had come as a shock, though, to find her seated on the Fourth's head, hidden beneath one of the rocky hair spikes, her knees tucked in close, arms around her thigh as she tried to make herself as small as she possibly could.

It was like looking into a mirror; go back eight years and he was likely right in that spot, in that exact posture.

It was eerie.

"Ino?"

No response.

"Ino, it's Naruto." He tried as he slowly moved closer, uncertain whether to approach or to hold his position. "I… um… well I-"

"You're going to run away again?"

Her voice, normally flirty and full of life, was a barely audible, hollow, rasp that was utterly devoid of emotion.

It struck him, then, just how badly his actions had affected her.

"I… uh…" He broke off and sighed before moving to sit by her side. "I'm sorry, Ino. I know I shouldn't have run off like that but… the last time someone…" He broke off again, choosing not to tell her about Jiraiya's confession. "The last time I was in that position, my entire worldview was turned on its head. Everything I had thought was right or true or the things that represented stability in my life… It was like standing over a thin layer of earth and then having the whole thing just cave in. Seeing you like that in the training field…" He turned his face to the starry sky and exhaled. "I'm sorry, Ino."

She did not respond for nearly a minute, leaving them in a stifling silence.

Then, in a quiet voice: "How do you do it?"

The question took him by surprise yet she simply continued speaking.

"I mean, looking back to when we were kids I can't help but imagine if I were in your shoes." She moved now, though it was little more than to stare at her own knees. "Who would I be if I had to bear the hatred of the entire village? Would I still hold my head high, be the confident, flirty blonde I am now?" She barked out a short, bitter, self-deprecating laugh. "Yeah, I wish. I split up with my best friend for an asshole pretty boy who wouldn't give me the time of day. I became the biggest fucking _bitch_ in the Academy because no one saw me as the 'perfect little princess' my dad told me I was. I treated you like you were little more than shit because hey! Everybody's doing it!

"I made myself a monster and for what? Fucking _trivialities._ " She spat out the last word hatefully. "And then I piss off a wasted Shika and he rips into me, letting me know that I'm little more than a little girl who sorely needs to be more mature. Out of nowhere comes the startling truth about the class idiot who's actually braver and stronger than anyone ever gave him credit for and I'm left wondering… Why the hell haven't you gone psycho on us? We'd fucking deserve it." Then, almost inaudibly, " _I'd deserve it._ "

It took a few moments for him to gather his thoughts, so disoriented was he after listening to her. Where most people had blindly hated him, Ino had put herself in his shoes, tried to see what she would have become if _she_ had been the one subjected to bearing the hatred of an entire village. She had taken measure of herself and found herself wanting and the guilt of knowing that she had been a part of the horrors that had formed his childhood was slowly killing her.

In a way, she _wanted_ him to hate her.

"I wanted to." He started, his voice as quiet as hers. "God, for the longest time I wanted to hate everyone around me. And I think I did, actually. At some point, I think I hated everyone equally; they'd glare at me, I'd glare right back and then they'd hurt me. God knows they only needed the flimsiest of excuses to hurt me.

"But, after a while, I just got drained, you know? I couldn't hate them any more because one kid's hate barely amounts to a drop compared to the whole village's. So, after a while, I chose to hate me. Maybe if I wasn't so short people wouldn't hate me. Maybe if I wasn't so blond. I kept finding reasons to hate me until I just wanted it all to end." He broke off as he recalled what was easily the darkest time of his life, a time ages before the 'ball of sunshine' Naruto came to being. "I wanted to die, Ino, because I just couldn't take it anymore. I had no friends, no family, was hated by all and when I wasn't actively hated, my very existence was being ignored.

"I knew by then that I couldn't pull off a 'random accident' death like running into a cart or falling off a rooftop; I was used to surviving such. I couldn't bleed out either; I'd been left in a pool of my own blood often enough to know that. So there I was, kicked out of the orphanage, wandering around trying to figure out a way to kill myself when, out of nowhere, this brunette comes up and offers me a bowl of ramen.

"I remember being a tad skeptical about it; no one liked me so why was someone randomly offering me food? But then it clicked: I'd never been poisoned before; maybe this young lady was here to grant me my wish?"

"A brunette… ramen… Ayame?" Ino asked as the dots slowly connected in her mind. It had to be! It would explain why he was so hung up on ramen and the Ichirakus; both had marked the beginning of a new path for him.

He confirmed it with a nod. "She sat with me, watched me eat and then pointed out her dad's stall. Promised that I'd always find a meal at their stand." He smiled faintly. "I didn't want to go back, though; still too hung up on dying to take her up on that offer. But two days of hunger combined with sleeping outdoors… well, I had a change of heart and showed up at the stand and there she was, smiling as radiantly as ever as she got me a bowl. She didn't care that I hadn't bathed in days or that I looked worse than most street bums, she just fed me. The story's a little longer than that but that was how it all started."

He shifted, now, stretching his legs out in front of him and clasping his hands behind his neck as he rested on the rock. "I guess my answer to your questions would be that I didn't do it on my own. I may have always seemed alone but I've got a few people in my corner and that's enough for me."

The answer, simple as it sounded, resonated deeply within her and, without consciously realizing it, she had fallen onto her side, resting her head in his lap, as tears streamed down her eyes.

She didn't know when she asked but it was the only question on her mind: would he accept her in his corner?

‹‹‡››

 **In case you didn't figure it out, the answer to the last question is yes.**

 **Again; I'm taking things slow because this is the way it would likely proceed IRL. Too many times have I seen Naruto simply bag a gaggle of women for no greater reason than the sex. I think a bit more realism is necessary for now. Again, mindless sex is on its way, just need to get a few basic relations out of the way.**

 **PS: Naruto's core values are now changing people! Remember how he's basically a 'Konoha till I die' moron in canon? Yeah well as his response to Ino shows, we're seeing more and more shifts in his personal motivations and these will definitely return to bite Konoha in the ass. Remember the Prologue!**

 **I'm not too certain what you guys can expect in the next set of chapters, just know that I don't plan on leaving him stuck in Konoha too long. We've got a Kage to save dammit! (Probably a bit of Kurotsuchi here, some Erza/Mira there and the budding issue of the Archives)**

 **Read and Review Please.**

 **Later**


	27. Konoha: Chapter 26

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 26**

"Days don't get much better than this around here, huh?" Kurotsuchi smiled as she basked in the shade of the tree, feeling more relaxed than she had in a long while. With Tsunade warning her to lay off the more rigorous training exercises, she had spent most of her time in Konoha working on the basics; chakra control exercises, the less strenuous katas of her preferred fighting style and other easy stuff. Of course, it hadn't been quite as easy for her to deal with the pain of betrayal but, in what felt like an ironic twist to her, Naruto, Tenten and Ino had helped her through her pain.

Sitting beside her was an equally relaxed Naruto who found that he really couldn't say otherwise. It had been a very chill day off for him as he awaited Tsunade's word on his performance during what had turned out to be an insanely annoying mission that had spanned the past two weeks.

The Land of Vegetables had dropped a few places on his 'potential vacation spots' list.

As such, Naruto was only too happy to take the day off, choosing to train with the Iwa kunoichi rather than his usual high-octane methods until said pink eyed kunoichi had called it for the day.

As it was, they were perfectly at ease resting beneath the tree in front of Tsunade's old apartment; the temperature was just right; the birds were singing and all seemed perfect.

"Yeah, _nothing_ can ruin this."

"It's today! It's today! It's today!"

"You had to talk, didn't you Size Queen?"

"Hey! I don't think _anyone_ could have seen _this_ coming." Kurotsuchi scowled, glaring at the duo that had just appeared a few feet away via shunshin. "I mean come on! Barbie looks like she's out to kill and Screamer's skipping like a schoolgirl."

"Naruto." Ino growled as she stormed over to join them, her jaw set so tight he thought it likely that she had ground her molars into dust. "Get her. To shut up. Before I murder someone."

"How long has she been like this?" Naruto asked warily, unwilling to escape one girl's fury by pulling another out of her ecstatic ramblings.

"All day."

"No way." Kurotsuchi fired back. "No one's _that_ obsessed."

Twin, deadpan comments, Naruto's "I am." and Ino's "He is.", had her goggling.

"Trust me," Ino continued as she sat between them to Kurotsuchi's silent ire. "Naruto's just as addicted as Tenten."

Kurotsuchi shivered involuntarily. "I don't even want to _guess_ what his obnoxious ass is hooked to."

Right about then, Tenten joined them, collapsing onto the grass to Naruto's right and plopping her head on his lap. "Whew, I'm exhausted!"

"Sure you don't wanna yell some more? I'm only _mildly_ annoyed." Ino shot back.

Tenten just rolled her eyes as Naruto's fingers played with her hair. " _You_ said I didn't seem like someone with a ton of A-grade ore to play around with. Don't get pissed if I won our little bet."

"Well, bet or no, I was just about to sick Matchstick on your ass." Kurotsuchi yawned, prompting a round of yawns from the others. "Even hearing you moan was less annoying than the last few minutes. And no, Matchstick; I am _not_ a voyeur."

"Keep telling yourself that, Size Queen." He snickered before they all settled into a comfortable silence.

"So, Naruto, how has this whole probation thing been?" Ino asked, breaking the peace. "Tenten told me about the whole 'saving a country' thing you pulled off in the Land of Vegetables."

"Meh, the probation's been decent. Most of the people I've had to work with have been pretty chill about the whole thing." He replied with a shrug. "Of course, a few of them _have_ ribbed me on the whole 'prankster king' thing but they've never let it interfere in the missions."

"You said 'most'." Kurotsuchi pointed out, having been told about the whole thing by Naruto himself. "So there's been a few assholes?"

Naruto rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Aren't there always? Hell, I had one on the Vegetable fiasco; damned idiot wouldn't let old grudges go."

All three girls wrinkled their noses in disgust; Tenten and Ino, knowing that he meant his status as jinchuriki, and Kurotsuchi thinking that he was referring to his days as a prankster.

"So how'd you deal with him?" Tenten prodded, prompting a grin from her boyfriend.

" _I_ didn't do shit. _Anko_ , on the other hand, showed him exactly where he stood on the totem pole."

"I have no idea who you're talking about but judging by your dual-wincing act just now, I'd say that this Anko lady is one hell of a bitch." Kurotsuchi stated with a hint of a smile.

"She'd consider that a compliment." Ino snorted. "Hell, she'd go all evil cackle and ask you to keep the praises coming."

"Okay, now I wanna meet her; sounds like we'd get along famously." The Iwa kunoichi smirked, triggering a round of shudders from her companions.

However the conversation would have gone they would never know, though, as a toad the size of an Alsatian appeared in a puff of smoke.

"Naruto-san, it is good to see you again."

Naruto sat up and squinted at the armored amphibian for a split-second before grinning widely. "Gamachō? Damn dude! You've gotten bigger!"

Though incapable of facial expressions like a human, it was obvious that the Toad was pleased by the blond's comment. "Your words honor me, Naruto-san. I am afraid, though, that I am but a messenger."

Tenten, still resting in his lap, could feel the subtle shift in his posture as his body tensed almost reflexively. "What is it? Is Gamakichi okay? Bunta? Ō-Gama-sennin-sama?"

"The Great One is well, Naruto-san." The Toad assured swiftly, once more pleased by the young man's reaction. Losing him as a summoner was a loss the Toads of Myobokuzan still bemoaned, particularly due to the shrouded nature of the event. It would do the Toad Sages good to hear that he still cared for them. Upon observing the slight tension in the air, Gamachō realized that he had been silent for a bit longer than was expected. "Myobokuzan is… settling, Naruto-san, though your absence still draws many a wistful smile."

The comment, delivered with an air of simple honesty, was enough to draw a relieved sigh from Naruto and he sagged with relief. "Okay… okay, what's up?"

"Jiraiya-sama asked me to deliver this to you." Gamachō replied, pulling a small piece of paper out of his pouch and handing it over to Naruto who swiftly read through its contents and squashed it. "He also asked that I apologize on his behalf; a new lead has come up regarding the weather that required his verification post-haste."

"Thanks, Gamachō." Naruto nodded to the Toad. "Tell Jiraiya to please be careful and let 'Kichi know that I'll talk to him first chance I get."

"Understood. Good day, Naruto-san."

The Toad vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Well, there goes my restful evening." Naruto sighed as he gently prodded Tenten who, getting the message, swiftly sat up.

"Something regarding the weather?" Kurotsuchi asked with arched eyebrows. "That's dreadfully unsubtle."

"It works." Naruto shrugged. "Besides, the rumors were about a 'Village Hidden in the Sky'; unsubtle, yeah, but the connection is there." He added, deflecting any more questions with casual ease. He knew fully well that Jiraiya meant 'Akatsuki' with the weather reference, as Tenten must have guessed but the Iwa kunoichi didn't have to know that now did she?

Besides, the Hidden Sky thing wasn't really a lie: himself, Jiraiya and Erza had dealt with the actual 'Hidden Sky' thing somewhere between his fifth and sixth month of training, killing off Ishidate and his crew _well_ before they could amount to a bigger threat.

"So, where to now?" Ino asked, subtly ogling him as he stretched languidly. She may have gotten quite close to him over the past six weeks but she still felt a bit reticent about blatant ogling. 'But damn has he _grown_! And if Tenten's smile the other night was anything then…' Feeling her cheeks grow hot, she swiftly cut _that_ train of thought off before it sped out of control though she missed Tenten's sly, knowing grin.

"I need to meet up with Shizune to collect a few things for him; a few custom jobs from some in-house vendors." He sighed again before squaring his shoulders. "Later."

‹‹‡››

"Looks like we're all done here, eh Mira-san?" Leaning her hip on the doorway leading out of the production area, Ayame watched with a tired smile as Mira bustled about the receiving area, cleaning tables, adjusting chairs and attending to what was likely a few stragglers who wanted to try their hand at wooing the beautiful waitress to a night out. The introduction of the white-haired beauty to her life had been viewed with great, though subtle, skepticism on her part but now, after three weeks of getting to know her better, the greatest negative feeling Ayame felt toward the bubbly waitress was annoyance thanks to the sheer amount of work the girl's presence had attracted to their stand. 'And even _that's_ overshadowed by the upswing in profits.'

Extra splurging cash had a way of making hard times seem less… difficult.

"Yup!" Mira whooped, striking a pose that had Ayame's body temperature climb by a few degrees. "Just gotta set those chairs back into place and its sake time!"

The ramen chef just shook her head, amused by the 'younger' girl's antics. She was an enthusiastic one, that was for sure, always eager to test new things out, regardless of other people's opinions. As far as Ayame was concerned, Mira was perfect for Naruto.

'Well, except for the aura of sexy she exudes.' The brunette amended as Mira sashayed past, her hips swinging to an internal rhythm that had the side effect of drawing everyone within viewing distance's eyes.

It didn't seem to be intentional; the girl just instinctively knew how to draw everyone's attention with the tiniest of motions. It didn't help that she was incredibly beautiful either. She wasn't perfect, not with her slightly off-center nose or her _slightly_ too wide lips but it all came together to form an image that the ramen chef found was often too hard to look away from.

'And that's my cue to get going.' She shook her head with a slightly self-deprecating smile. Unlike her new waitress, _she_ wasn't beautiful; she had always ever been 'just the ramen chef's daughter' even if her father often left her to man the shop when he was out hunting new spices as he was doing at the moment. Where Mira had luxuriant white hair, hers was a plain, unattractive brown, often hidden away under her hat. Where Mira wore nice, fitting clothes cut in the latest fashions, most only ever noticed her apron.

Naruto certainly hadn't.

'Nope, no, no, no, no, no!' She frowned as she turned into the production area and swiftly yanked out her things and stuffed them into her knapsack. 'I am _not_ getting into how I abruptly came to see Naruto as _way_ more than a little brother. I am _not_ getting into how annoying it is to see him traipse around with Tenten and Ino hanging off his every word while living with the Bombshell Acquisitions. I am _not-_ ' She froze, let out a huge breath of air as her chin dropped to her breast. 'A~nd I I just reminded myself. Fuck.'

"Ayame?"

"Coming!" She schooled her features and strode out to meet with an equally packed Mira. "Sorry, got a little bit lost in thought there."

A concerned look crossed the waitress' face. "You okay?"

"I'll be fine. Just a random mental blurb." She lied casually. "You're heading out?"

"Yeah..." Though she didn't look convinced, Mira chose to drop the issue, much to Ayame's silent relief. "Yeah. I just gotta drop a few things off at home and them I'm out for the night."

"Sure. Have a good time then. And don't drink too much! We're still manning this solo till dad gets back."

"Will do." Mira smiled as she walked away from the stand. Threading her way past the throng of humans milling about, the succubus couldn't quite keep a smirk off her lips.

Lust was a powerful thing.

Even now, her aura tightly tamped down to an all time low and her face possessing a few imperfections to allow her blend in more easily, she could feel it like a cloud; wherever she went, she was constantly beset by a host of lust-filled glances and the occasional lascivious leer.

It didn't bother her, after all, with nothing more than a false cheer and her natural sensuality, she had built up a decent pool of informants through the ramen stand who, without consciously realizing it, always gave her little, seemingly random, tidbits of information that had helped her build a decent profile on a number of her interests within the village.

It was, after all, the very reason she had prodded Naruto into landing her the waitressing gig.

Erza handled the more physical aspects of their shared mate; she was comfortable handling the 'cloak and dagger' stuff, triangulating her efforts with Yuki's.

And she was glad she had taken up the task: from individual civilians and shinobi who simply schemed pointlessly to organized blocs within the Village's economic sector, it seemed as though Naruto had more enemies than he could ever know what to do with.

"Hey there cutie!"

She forced down the snarl of rage that bubbled up at the sight of a trio of clearly drunken men swaying toward her, choosing instead to plaster on a vapid smile while seeking a way out of this that wouldn't result in their deaths.

Of course, the men took this as acceptance on her part and moved in, trying to box her in as the one who had spoken tossed around a few crude words that must have sounded charming to his ears.

Mira, however, was a war veteran the likes of which they had never seen and she was able to maneuver around them such that they had just about smacked their head into each other before realizing that she was past them.

"Sorry! I'm closed for tonight!" She almost retched as their stench hit her nose but she expertly made it seem like she was giggling. "Come to Ichiraku's early tomorrow okay?"

"The demon's stand?" One of the snorted in disgust. "Fuck am I doing there?"

It took all of her control to keep a lid on her powers right then as the power of the _thousands_ of demons she had consumed called for the destruction of the fools before her. It was only the unseen threat of the ANBU she could sense lurking in the surrounding shadows that made her hold back; senselessly slaughtering these fools would only bring trouble to her mate.

"I work there! And I'll be very glad to see you too!" She waved as she put more distance between them. "See you!"

' _Lady Mirajane?_ '

'I'm here Yuki.'

' _I've found something that you urgently need to see. It's about Naruto-sama's childhood._ '

Mira's eyes narrowed as she crossed into the outer suburbs of the Village, Naruto's apartment looming in the distance. The vixen, Yuki, was one of the foremost reconnaissance experts in Makai having honed her craft during the War.

If she had found something she deemed important enough to request an immediate audience…

'I'm on my way. Erza?'

' _Lady Titania has been alerted and is on her way to Naruto-sama's home._ '

'Good.'

‹‹‡››

 _ **And this one's done as well.**_

 _ **Not much to say really.**_

 _ **Later.**_


	28. Konoha: Chapter 27

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 27**

"What I wouldn't give for a day off." Sakura groaned as she collapsed into her sofa, her muscles screaming.

Increased duties at the general hospital as Shizune embarked on her annual check-up of the other healthcare facilities in the Village combined with taking up a number of the Hokage's assistant's duties piled onto _her own_ duties as a shinobi meant that she hadn't enjoyed more than four hours of sleep per day for the past couple of weeks. As a matter of fact, today was the first time she had gotten home before 9PM.

"God, I've been out of the loop so bad!" She groused as she settled in even deeper into the remarkably comfy piece of furniture. "I wonder how Ino's doing?"

"Forehead! You home?"

Speak of the devil…

"I'm here!" Sakura shouted, completely unwilling to move off her comfortable position. "Key?"

"Didn't bring it!"

The rosette pressed her hands into her eyes and moaned before channeling chakra to her fingertips and letting it flow into the ground. "Window's open."

There was no response for a few moments until her window creaked open and Ino's head popped up. "Sheesh, Forehead, couldn't even open the door for me?"

"Too. Tired."

"How come?" Ino grunted as she shimmied into the apartment. "Kakashi's giving you a hard time?"

"I wish it was just training." The rosette groused. "Shizune's on check-up duties so she's dumped most of her duties on me. That means I've gotta keep the General Hospital running smoothly while ensuring that Hokage-sama's daily itinerary is followed to the letter in addition to my own stuff. I'm breaking apart here!"

"There there; it'll get better soon." Ino rolled her eyes as she patted her friend's hair. "You had dinner yet?"

"No."

"Well then, let me see what I can scrounge up from your fridge." The blonde eased her way past and strode into the kitchen only to stagger out in shock. "On second thought… I'll get your kitchen cleaned up first."

Ino's reaction made Sakura frown. "It can't be that bad."

"It's right here for you to see."

That sparked her ire. So maybe she had been incredibly busy over the past couple of weeks; if the rest of the house was still manageable then the kitchen _surely_ didn't look as bad as Ino had made it seem.

Her anger fizzled out the moment she laid eyes on the warzone she called a kitchen.

"I think our presence interrupted the battle between the roaches and the spiders on Remnant Hill." The blonde teased as she gingerly lifted a dish of _something_ out of her sink. "Newsflash: if those webs are any indication, I think the spiders just launched a vicious counter-strike."

Sakura couldn't even talk; she just pulled on a spare pair of rubber gloves she had stashed into her pocket at the hospital earlier in the day and attacked the aptly named 'Remnant Hill.'

For nearly fifteen minutes, the two young ladies waded into the war, savagely destroying battlements of dirt and roach bunkers. Then, as Ino struggled with a particularly tough pot, she tossed sponge away with a huff of disgust. "What I wouldn't give to have Blondie here."

The comment caught Sakura's attention. "You don't mean Naruto, do you?"

Still pissed off at the pot, Ino's response came out a little curtly. Take a long random guess."

The sharp response flew right over Sakura's head. "When did you get all buddy-buddy with Naruto? I mean, pining for him while you're doing the dishes? Gee."

"What can I say? Blondie got cute. God, those abs!" Ino sighed dreamily. "Plus; he's caring, kind, hardworking, scary powerful if the way he holds back during our spars means anything. Oh, and he's actually got his brain up and running." When she heard no response, the blonde turned to her friend only to see the rosette's jaw hanging. "What?"

"Did you… did you just describe _Naruto_ as potential _boyfriend_ material?!"

Ino frowned, not seeing what the issue was. "Isn't he?"

"But… but… when did you even get to know him?!"

"Sakura, he's been in the Village for _two months._ " Ino replied with a roll of her eyes as she went back to her scrubbing. "I think that's enough time to get to know him."

The reply caught Sakura off guard. Naruto had been in the Village for _two months_ and he hadn't once sought her out? _'To be fair,_ _ **you**_ _didn't even notice that he was around till Ino mentioned it. Maybe he was busy?'_

It was a cold thought, one that she would worry about later, she decided as she focused on her conversation with Ino. "Okay, so you've gotten to know him better and that's good but… Naruto as a boyfriend?"

For the second time that night, Ino dropped the dishrag. "What do you see him as, Sakura?"

She didn't even process the thought; it was an instinctive response: "Naruto's my friend." She paused and then decided to explain it better. "No, I think I can say that he's like a brother to me. An annoying brother whose behaviour gets on my nerves sometimes but… Over the past three years I've come to see that I can trust Naruto with my life. I know I was a bitch to him when we were in the Academy and I wasn't much better when we started out as genin but… I trust him with my life. I just hope he thinks the same of me."

"Wait. So you don't hate him or utterly dislike him or something?"

The rosette scoffed at what she considered to be a stupid question. "Of course I don't hate him! Naruto's like a puppy; lots of energy, playful as all hell and equally as annoying but you just can't hate him."

Ino was utterly baffled. "So why were you so stunned that I saw him as a potential boyfriend?"

Sakura threw her hands up in exasperation. "I just told you that I see him as a brother! I mean, objectively, he _may_ be hot boyfriend material but actually admitting it would be weird! It would be like admitting that Shikamaru's got a 'lazy, I don't give a fuck' kinda sexy."

The kitchen grew deathly quiet.

Then, a bone rattling chill permeated the air, emanating from a beatifically smiling Sakura. "I'm sorry, what did I just say?"

Silence.

Then:

"Temari will hear this!" Ino screamed as she dived out of the kitchen, Sakura right on her heels.

"Spicy pork chops for dinner then!"

"I regret nothing! Nothing!"

"Famous last words!"

‹‹‡››

"Tsunade-sama is going to kill me." Shizune muttered as she paced about before the small building she had chosen as her meeting spot. "If she ever finds this out I am utterly _dead_."

For the first time in her life, she cursed Jiraiya and actually meant it.

If it weren't for him and his annoying ability to ferret information out of people she would never have been strong-armed into the position she was in now.

"What the hell does he want with access to _this_ anyway?"

The question had been eating at her for days on end now, ever since Jiraiya had made the request nearly six weeks ago.

' _Naruto needs_ Archivist _access to Konoha's records. I can't tell you why, only he can, but I can assure you that he's god some scary good reasons to ask.'_

It made no sense: sure, she knew of the shit the blond had been forced to deal with as a child but for him to request an _Archivist_ pass? That level of access was restricted to the Hokage and precisely _**one**_ other individual in the Village. For him not to ask Tsunade, considering how close they were…

She didn't want to think of the possible implications.

"Shizune-nee?"

The raven-haired woman nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard his voice; she was, however, able to swiftly mask her shock by projecting the quiet fury she felt at being thrust into this situation.

"Ah, I apologize for showing up out of the blue like that." Naruto averted his eyes from her glare as he meekly handed a tag to her.

The woman inside felt inordinately pleased at the cowered look he had: it was good to know that he still considered her sufficiently scary enough to be feared even if he could kick her ass six ways to Sunday. "I'll consider that apology when I understand _exactly_ why you're asking me for this."

Shizune was stunned by the calculating gleam that Naruto's eyes suddenly possessed. She loved him like a brother but she was so used to seeing the headstrong, determined but not very bright Naruto that seeing him as he was now…

"I know I'm asking lot from you with this request, Shizune-nee, but I want you to know that I wouldn't ask if I didn't have a very good reason." He stated calmly. "However, I cannot tell you my reasons without an absolute assurance that we are alone."

Shizune stared at him, gauging him for a few more seconds before turning and walking toward the building behind them.

The building in question was little more than a single room apartment, isolated on a parcel of land that was quite heavily forested. Shinobi and civilian alike knew it as an historical building; the location of the very first meeting between the Senju and the Uchiha. Only the absolute top brass knew that it doubled as the entry to the Archives as powerful sealing arrays designed by Uzumaki Mito and modified by Jiraiya, Kushina and Minato created powerful barriers that kept every one out. Only specific sealing tags like the one Naruto had returned to Shizune granted access to the area.

The building itself was protected by its own network of sealing arrays and it was for this reason that Shizune led him into the building.

"I'm listening."

Naruto sucked in a deep breath before letting it out slowly. "Among other things, I want to know how the Senju died out."

Shizune did **not** see that coming.

"It just struck me while I was with the Tsuchikage's granddaughter." Naruto continued. "The Senju and the Uchiha, for all the wars between them, were equally matched: not just in terms of overall power but in numbers as well. In fact, if the history books are right then the Senju had the numerical advantage when the alliance was first forged."

Shizune's mind was filled with fast-flying thoughts as he spoke, each thought merging to create a bleak picture. She could tell where he was going even though he had only just begun his explanation. "Until they were wiped out by Itachi the Uchiha were one of the most populous clans in Konoha."

Naruto nodded. "It makes no sense that only _one_ out of two evenly matched clans in an alliance would suddenly die out while the other flourished and it gets even more suspicious when you consider the fact that the Uchiha were one of the most despised clans around. The Sharingan may have been a hell of a tool but it didn't help them make friends."

"If either of the two clans should have been wiped out, it should have been the Uchiha." Shizune stated, her voice almost a whisper. "The Senju were considered to be more loyal and less likely to stab a friend in the back."

"Which brings me to another thing I wanted to look up: what really led to Konoha's absence during the Siege of Uzushio? I mean, the Uzumaki were allies of the Senju, not just by written alliance but in a number of cases by blood. I want to know what really happened there."

Shizune exhaled deeply as she pondered over what her next step would be. The points Naruto had brought up were reasonable. More importantly, they were the scary, cold type of questions every one might have thought of once but had ignored them in favor of not rocking the boat.

If his suspicions were correct then the very foundation of Konoha would have been absolutely ruined. Clans would rise up against each other as paranoia shot to unforeseen levels and the legacy of the Uchiha, tainted by their own past and Itachi's actions, would be forever destroyed.

More importantly to her, though, was the effect such a truth would have on her master: for all her incredible physical and mental prowess, Tsunade was emotionally fragile, almost painfully so, in fact.

This would destroy her.

'But I can't hide this just to protect her. No, if anything, she would be the most deserving to know. If this ends up being nothing then there's no harm done. If it _does_ then she will need to know.' Shizune thought with a frown as she came to a decision. 'God forbid it panning out but if it does then I'll have to ensure that Jiraiya-sama is close by.'

"Follow me." She turned and walked up to a wall, waiting to ensure that he was by her side before placing her hand on a patch of the wall and channeling chakra to her fingertips.

At first, nothing happened. Then, a seal array glowed beneath her palm, the seals at its furthermost cardinal extremes suddenly shot outward, extending outward and upward until they had inscribed another sealing array that created a six-by-four foot border on the wall. As soon as Shizune pulled her hand away, inky darkness spread from the central array to the border array until it resembled a doorway into a dark room.

"Close your eyes, hold your breath." Shizune warned before walking _into_ through the 'doorway.'

Naruto simply shrugged and did as she asked before following her. He kept on walking till he felt an arm on his shoulder.

"You can open your eyes now."

He did as so and found himself in a large, airy room with two doors opposite him and two more to his left. There were pieces of furniture strewn about the room, most not matching any other. "Where are we?"

"This is the Archives' waiting room. The end of the road for anyone without an Informant pass."

"An _Informant_ pass?"

"The Archives are the repository of every crucial bit of information pertaining to Konoha's very existence." Shizune lectured. "Everything from regular mission reports to S-class files to the Village's economic records are stored here. Of course, certain documents exist in multiple copies but the original files come here."

"Hence the secrecy." His response prompted a nod from her.

"There are three access levels to the Archives. The _Collation_ pass allows the bearer to get as far as this point. Bearers are typically elite jōnin or other, specific shinobi who are entrusted with moving documents to the Archives. They drop off their files along the wall and are expected to leave through either of those doors-" She pointed at the doors to his left." "-within five minutes. Any longer and the security measures are triggered.

"The _Informant_ pass is the access level I bear. As far as I know, the Jōnin Commander and the ANBU Commander are the only others who have this access level and I only have it because of my role as Hokage-sama's assistant. With it, I can go into the Archives and access whatever documents fall under the Informant's jurisdiction."

"How do you know which files are accessible?"

"There is a system." She replied shortly and he knew not to pry. "Unlike a Collator, an Informant can stay within the Archives for extended periods of time with the security system simply setting off pings to let the Archivist know that the Informant is still in there. In addition to that, an Informant is allowed to bring in one person with them on the condition that the person never goes beyond this point."

Which is why we haven't been chucked out on our ears." He grinned.

"Precisely." She decided to let go of the overly formal routine with him. "The final access level is the Archivist which allows the bearer pretty much unlimited access to the Archives. Of those that even _know_ about the existence of this access level, you're one of maybe ten people to know that the Hokage is NOT the only one with an Archivist pass."

"Wait; seriously?"

Shizune shook her head and walked up to one of the doors opposite them. "Because only an Archivist can grant another person the same access level, there is always a second Archivist in the Village to ensure that certain secrets don't get locked away for good." She knocked on the door three times in quick succession before stepping back. "During the attempted destruction of Konoha by Suna and Oto, the previous Archivist was gravely injured by a stray attack. With the death of Sandaime-sama, we were lucky that you helped drag Tsunade-sama back before the previous Archivist died." As with their entry point, the doorway Shizune had knocked on turned inky black and Naruto knew that someone was coming through. "It took Godaime-sama well over a year to pick a new Archivist but she found someone suitable in the end."

As if on cue, a frazzled looking, bespectacled blonde stumbled through the doorway.

"Good evening, Hinamori-san."

The blonde looked up and took a step back in surprise. "Kato-san? I recognized your knock but… Why is Uzumaki-san here?"

Shizune glanced at Naruto before replying: "He'll have to explain that to you himself…"

‹‹‡››

Tsunade couldn't help but smile as she perused the files arrayed before her: each one was from a different shinobi, none of whom were below Tokubetsu Jōnin in rank, and they all pertained to the same subject.

Uzumaki Naruto.

While she would coolly deny it if she was ever confronted with it, Tsunade knew deep down that she considered the blond her favorite person in the world. Sure she loved Shizune like a little sister and, for all his infuriating perversion, she would admit -to herself _**only!**_ \- that Jiraiya had grown on her since their childhood days, Naruto took the spotlight for a simple reason: he had given her hope and in doing so, had brought back her will to live.

She considered her personal interest in his success a necessity.

' _-is quite amazing to watch, really. His innate ability to create unique strategies on the fly has been honed to incredible levels, allowing him to instantly draw upon the pool of resources he has available, allocate them as is required and efficiently craft a plan, often with contingencies, that can catch just about any one off guard.'_

' _-Naruto's unique fighting style: he utilizes a constant, dynamic sequence of strategies with his clones to push and prod at his enemy's defenses, often doing so with sparing use of ninjutsu. Then, the instant he finds a chink in the armor, he swiftly overpowers his foe with an overwhelming show of force. It is quite interesting to watch really…'_

' _One wouldn't expect the 'Prankster King from Hell' to be an efficient leader. I know I didn't. However the degree of maturity with which he approaches leadership is impressive. His charismatic aura is a boon, yes, but his ability to simply talk to the men in his unit and get them to see his side of things… A little more field experience and he'll make for a capable squad leader.'_

The Hokage's grin was almost ear-splitting as she pulled open a drawer and took out Naruto's file. She was just about to open it to pen some notes when she noticed a flimsy piece of paper poking out from behind the binder. She grabbed it and read through, her happy buzz dying off with each word.

 _Konoha NEEDS to know, Hime. They need to know who they've wronged. Please reconsider before I return or I_ _ **will**_ _take steps. Damn the bloody consequences._

Her eyes narrowed as she re-read the document and, if it were possible, the flimsy sheet would have gone up in flames.

If there was anything she loved _and_ hated about Jiraiya, it was his mulish stubbornness. Once the man set his mind to something, he was like a horse with blinkers on. And, regarding Naruto's heritage and whether or not it was time to make it public, that stubbornness had evolved into something more.

She could understand where her teammate was coming from: Naruto _did_ deserve to have the Village as a whole grovel before him when they realized just **whose** graves they had viciously spat upon but she simply couldn't understand why he didn't get _her_ point.

A public declaration of Naruto's parentage and the associated heritage would simply remind some of his most dangerous enemies that he was still alive. And she didn't mean Iwa or Kumo; their attacks would have been easy to defend against. No, Minato's planned reforms and policies had earned him the ire of some particularly vicious bastards who still sought blood. Sure, she could help deflect some of their attacks thanks to her post but she couldn't afford to look biased. It had taken every waking moment of the past four years to prove to many on both the Civilian and the Shinobi blocs that she was the best candidate to become the Hokage and even then, many of the damned vultures still hovered, searching for an excuse to tear into her.

Naruto had grown, in spite of their hatred and contempt, and had become what they thought he would never be. As far as she was concerned, that was one hell of a win for him, at least until he could build his own support base that would insure him against crippling political blows.

But now, with Jiraiya's threat dangling over her head, she knew that she would be forced to make a decision.

She could either stand with Naruto and damn the shadowy bastards that wanted to harm the blond or she could stand aside and still get drawn into the war in the end.

"Damn it!" She sighed, dropping her head into her palms tiredly. "I can't believe I'm actually asking for something to come up and take this off my mind!"

On cue, she felt a messenger swiftly approaching her door and she knew she'd regret her words…

‹‹‡››

 _ **And Kazekage Rescue is A-Go!**_

 _ **So…**_

 _ **I've seen a multitude of writers go down the whole 'Sakura was a bitch! Let's bash the fuck outta her character' and I can't blame them; she**_ _ **was**_ _ **a bitch.**_

 _ **But when I tried writing a 'bitchy' Sakura leading into an Ino confrontation and the like… it just fell flat.**_

 _ **As such, I went for what I feel is a better character. Sakura still sees Naruto as the annoying SoB he was way back when (and, you gotta admit that he**_ _ **was**_ _ **really annoying) but rather than hating on Ino for seeing him as boyfriend material, she's just weirded out by the fact because she sees him as a brother.**_

 _ **Does that help?**_

 _ **Time to save a Kage.**_

 _ **{PS: I know Shiho works in the cryptology department. Call this artistic license or whatever.}**_


	29. Kazekage Rescue: Chapter 28

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 28**

"We need to move out now!" A clan head argued, his voice adding to the cacophony that had consumed the Sunagakure War Council.

Naruto barely heard a word they said, his eyes locked on to Temari's grief stricken form, her pain almost palpable from where he sat.

He had arrived about half an hour ago, having left his team behind to gather first-hand intel on the attack as he raced onward to assess the situation. He knew it probably wasn't the best action to take, being the one in charge of the mission and all but he had no choice; he had been in hypergear ever since he heard the news.

He had been in the Archives with Shizune and Shiho when the call came in: the Kazekage had been kidnapped by two members of the Akatsuki after a destructive battle.

By the time he arrived at Tsunade's office, the Godaime had prepared a mission file for him containing every detail he would need as well as a dossier on the shinobi Shikaku, as the Jonin Commander, had recommended.

He had picked out just six of the fifteen choices.

Sakura had, of course, been a no-brainer; she was the third best medic in the Village, just inches behind Shizune as it stood, placing her among the elite class in the medical field. If anything went wrong on the health front, she was the best available choice to work something out. Ino was his next pick, along with Shiranui Genma. It was almost certain that they would need information and he wasn't ready to go easy on any captive; Ino had express orders to tear information out of any minds they encountered, regardless of the cost and Genma, known for his unique brew of poisons, was there to act as an additional insurance for her and Sakura.

Then, he had picked out Inuzuka Hana and Neji; the first for her remarkable skill at tracking and hunting and the second to act as a scout in their journey.

The last choice, though, was one he had forced himself to make.

"Handing this mission over to Konoha nin is-"

"Enough."

He hadn't yelled; hell, he hadn't even raised his voice, yet the simple command echoed about the room with incredible force.

They could all feel the change; a sudden pressure forcing them to remain in their seats and shut the hell up.

Naruto stood. "Now is not the time for petty inter-Village rivalries. My friend has been captured by people who, undoubtedly, have nefarious intentions. I will be heading out in twenty minutes to find him and return him home. My team will be with me as well as a team of not more than six of your shinobi. We will meet at the Village Gates."

And, with his piece said, he walked out of the room.

‹‹‡››

When he reached the Admin building, he was swiftly surrounded by the members of his team. "Where's Sakura? And Genma?"

"Sakura's with Genma; she was working on Kankuro as at the last time we saw her." To his silent ire, it was Kakashi that spoke up. It made sense, though Naruto was loathe to admit it; the man was the most experienced shinobi in the group and so, unless Naruto, as the team leader, specifically assigned the role to a different person, the role of second-in-command fell to him. "The kidnappers have been identified as Sasori of the Red Sand and the Mad Bomber of Iwa, Deidara; the latter's a manic obsessed with explosives while the former's a prodigal puppet master."

"Do we have full dossiers?"

Kakashi nodded. "The Suna nin are in the process of creating copies for each of us."

"Good." Naruto turned to the Inuzuka tracker. "Hana?"

"They were able to retrieve what looks like an arm from the fight scene." She reported dutifully. "My boys have confirmed that it reeks heavily of a unique explosive compound we've only ever experienced once: at the hands of Iwa's Explosion Corps."

"Deidara is known to have served with the Boom Squad long enough to have become their captain." Kakashi added. "He'll know how to make those explosive compounds."

It didn't take Naruto a second to figure out the connection: if the arm still reeked 'heavily' of those compounds then it was unlikely to be some random casualty's that got doused with a spray. "The arm almost certainly belongs to Deidara."

Hana nodded. "The boys have already found a trail from the Village Gates and since they've already picked up the Kazekage's scent, they're trying to see if they can get a whiff of the Puppeteer's scent in case they split up further down the road."

If they were 'trying' then they hadn't succeeded yet. Naruto didn't fret about that; Hana was well ahead of schedule. "Well done, Hana; Neji?"

"The chakra signatures around the fight zone have degraded too much to obtain any good reads on the two and I couldn't pick anything up in any direction."

Naruto understood; elite chakra sensors and skilled Hyuga or Aburame could tell certain details about combatants by merely studying the residual signatures following a fight. However, accuracy decreased over time and, beyond a point, grew utterly useless. They hadn't expected anything from the Hyuga at this stage, to be honest. "Keep an eye open for anomalies either way. Ino?"

"I've run interrogations on every jonin within a two mile radius of the fight bar the few that were in the Council meeting." She reported brusquely. "They all agree that the Kazekage was taken in the direction of the trail the Triplets have found."

"In that case, you guys get ready to head out; I'll check up on Sakura then join you at the Gates." When he noticed that Kakashi seemed eager to talk to him, he swiftly responded: "Kakashi, I need you to pick up those dossiers you talked about then back Hana up if the Suna team arrives before I do. Hana, only six of them are allowed to follow us, got that?"

"Got it."

"Good." With their duties laid out, the team went their separate way to get ready.

As luck would have it, Sakura and Genma were just walking out of the Hospital when he showed up so they immediately headed for the rendezvous.

"How's Kankuro?"

"Recovering." Sakura replied, letting go of her exhaustion in one huge breath. "Sasori's poison… that shit's really fucked up."

"It's a special kind of nasty." Genma agreed. "I studied the sample the Suna nin extracted from Kankuro's clothes; the thing is a hybrid poison, containing trace elements of a number of neuro- and haemo-toxins bonded by a cultured micro-organism of some sort; that the Suna med-nin kept him _alive_ for so long is a testament to their skill."

"So what now?" Naruto prodded. "For as long as Sasori is present, we are gonna be forced to play the long game and if what I've heard is right then we'd just be playing right into Deidara's range."

"Leave him to me." Sakura replied confidently. "I've already created an antidote to the samples I extracted from Kankuro; I've only got three samples, though, so we've only got space for one more."

Naruto arched an eyebrow at that. "We?"

"Sakura and I will take on the Puppeteer." Genma answered. "He's bound to have a way to force people to stay at his preferred range. Fortunately, I've got a nifty way to counter that."

"Once he's there, he's dead." Sakura smirked, smacking her fist into an open palm.

"Don't get cocky Sakura." Naruto warned, though his voice came off particularly harsh and inadvertently annoying her. "These guys are S-ranked threats for a reason."

Sakura rolled her eyes as they approached the Village Gates. "Naruto please don't baby me. I've been training with an S-rank _legend_."

"So have I yet you don't see me smirking at a simple battle plan." Naruto fired back, not caring that they were drawing attention to themselves. "I'm not babying you, Sakura, but I expect you to know the first rule of battle! These people are the goddamned bogeymen of the shinobi world for a reason! They hunt down literal weapons of mass destruction for sport! You think being _trained_ by a living legend is impressive? Orochi-fucking-maru _was_ one of these guys until he screwed up and they had him running with his tail between his snaky legs so if you can't tell precisely where that leaves you on the totem pole then I think you should stay back!"

And with that, the blond stomped toward Hana and ordered them to move out.

‹‹‡››

Ten minutes later, the two chunin of Team Seven were still at loggerheads with each other, though they had chosen to stay away from each other to maintain the team's fragile peace.

Naruto was up front with Hana to keep an eye on the ninken, Kakashi held the middle of their little formation, flanked by Ino and Sakura while Genma and Neji brought up the rear with Temari and Lady Chiyo representing Sunagakure.

"Naruto, I know we're not… you know, friends and all but do you mind if I asked a question?" Hana asked as they raced over the dunes, her canine partners a few feet ahead.

"You can." He shrugged. "Of course, depending on the question, I retain the right to _not_ proffer an answer."

"That's understandable." She agreed. Then, after taking a moment to center her thoughts, she ventured forth; "What happened back there? With Sakura, I mean."

"You're going to have to clarify what you mean."

"Don't try to bullshit me, Naruto; I've already agreed that you can choose not to answer." She growled, taking offense to the perceived slight.

The blond didn't seem bothered by her gruff response. "It wasn't bullshit, Hana; what exactly do you want to know?"

"I want to know why you sounded so annoyed at her." She replied. "I don't know if you've noticed but Sakura's actually grown in the past couple of years; she's more powerful than most chunin, heck, maybe a few jonin."

"And she has every right to be proud of that." Naruto shrugged. "But she's gotta leave that pride behind on a mission like this."

That sounded wrong to the Inuzuka; pride, when kept in check, could be a good thing. It was a lesson every Inuzuka was taught at a young age: always maintain your pride in yourself and in the pack "What do you mean?"

Naruto sighed. "What do you know of our targets?"

"The Kazekage's captors?"

"Yes."

Hana took a few seconds to mentally process that. "Sasori of the Red Sands and Deidara, the Mad Bomber of Iwa. Two S-ranked criminals with a bounty that puts them in an elite class in the bingo book. Sasori-" She stopped when she saw Naruto raise his hand.

"That's all well and good but let me ask a different question: do you know _why_ they are working together?"

That brought her up short.

One was from Sunagakure, the other, Iwa. Two villages that were generally at loggerheads with each other.

So why?

"They're S-ranked criminals." She supplied, though she knew that her reasoning here was flawed. Badly. "Maybe they've come to realize that their chances of survival are better together?"

The blond shook his head. "S-ranked criminals rarely ever team up. At that level, their egos are only outmatched by their skills. No, these guys have teamed up for a more terrifying reason."

Silence fell upon them again and Hana took the opportunity to sniff around to ensure that they were on the right track.

"What I'm about to tell you is something that only a select few know about within the shinobi forces. And not just Konoha's forces but all around the Nations." He paused and then continued. "Jiraiya found evidence of a group of powerful shinobi working together toward a common goal. He never found out just how many they were but he did figure two things out: their goal and a few members.

"The members he identified, not counting our targets, are: Orochimaru of the Sannin, though he has been excommunicated now under unknown circumstances; Kisame of the Hidden Mist and Uchiha Itachi."

Hana couldn't hide her shock upon hearing those names.

Those were some of the most powerful shinobi alive; the bogeymen that few _dared_ whisper of.

'And they're part of **one** organization?!'

"What's… what's their goal?"

The blond slanted a look at her. "I thought you'd figured it out, actually. I didn't quite hide it when I was yelling after all."

She stared at him in confusion for a few seconds before the connection seemingly exploded into her mind.

Everything suddenly made sense: how he knew about this group, why the Kazekage was taken, his words to Sakura earlier…

' _They hunt down literal weapons of mass destruction for sport!'_

"Jinchuuriki… The Kazekage… You…" She almost stumbled at the realization and she was glad that he was swift enough to keep her steady. "They're targeting the jinchuuriki!"

"Our passengers, to be precise." He shrugged like it was nothing new.

'It probably isn't.' She amended mentally. 'After all, he's likely known this since…

Another realization crashed into her, forcing him to keep her steady again.

"That's why you went with Jiraiya-sama!" She gasped. "That's why he took you on the training trip. To prepare you for… this!"

"Guilty as charged." He shrugged again, not looking the least bothered by the fact that he was on the hit list of some of the most terrifying monsters the shinobi world had ever known.

Hana couldn't understand how he could look so calm; she knew that, in his shoes, she'd find the deepest, darkest, most isolated hole in existence and crawl into it until she died. Her eyes flickered over to him and, for the first time, she found herself seeing, not the boy that had left three years ago, a fresh genin with more mischief in his little finger than her brother could ever dream of.

No, she could finally see what her senses had been blaring at her since she had met him in the Hokage's office: a strong, toughened warrior who carried his battles with nary a whimper; a man who faced the world down with an unshakable, focused determination.

A potential-

"The boys have stopped."

His voice snapped her out of her internal musings though it took her a few seconds to understand what he meant. Her eyes instantly cut to the horizon and she was able to see her boys and the message they were passing.

"They've found something." She murmured before whistling sharply. A series of undulating howls rang out in response. "Two more scents just showed up: one of them smells like… fish? And the other like… pocky?!" She frowned and whistled a separate note. "Hold on, I'm asking for a clarification." A few seconds later, a sharp, keening whine echoed back. "They're sure of what they're telling me."

"Fish…" Naruto sighed. "You haven't figured it out? It's Kisame. And if Jiraiya's contacts are right, wherever the walking sushi platter goes, the Kin Slayer follows."

Her eyes grew wide and she swiftly gave the recall signal to her boys. "We're gonna need Hatake-san here."

‹‹‡››

The instant the team converged, Naruto launched into an explanation:

"We've got a situation: Itachi and Kisame just popped up smack-dab in the center of our trail. Judging by the nature of our mission, particularly how time-sensitive it is, I'm certain that they're only here to delay us while Sasori and Deidara either escape or figure out a way to extract a tailed beast from a jinchuriki without inadvertently releasing said chakra construct."

While Kakashi instantly understood what Naruto meant, it was the Lady Chiyo that voiced it. "A direct assault will cost us too much time but circling around will leave us open to attacks from behind."

"We can't afford to split up, either." Ino added. "No offense to anyone but Naruto and Kakashi are our heaviest hitters; we can't afford to stick them both on one team to face a threat but we also can't afford to split them up."

"Which is why I've chosen a different tactic." Naruto stated as he lifted his thumb to his mouth and bit in sharply, drawing blood. "I'm calling in reinforcements."

The rest of the team watched in bemusement as he sped through a series of handseals and slammed his bloody hand on the ground.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

Unlike most summoning, there was no explosion of smoke to mark the appearance of the desired summons. Instead, two women simply popped into existence in front of them.

"Naruto-sama."

"Master~"

The Suna members on Naruto's team could only stare in shock at the sight of the two incredible beauties that had bowed to their team leader while the Konoha natives were stuck wondering what his recently acquired retainers were if he could summon them like… well, _summoning creatures_.

"Team, meet Erza Scarlet and Mirajane Strauss. They will be taking on Kisame and Itachi."

Kakashi swiftly reined in his shock as the two straightened up, taking in their appearance as they did. The redhead to his left, whom Naruto had referred to as 'Erza Scarlet' was clothed in a dark purple, sleeveless robe that was tied off at the waist by a light pink obi and in her hand she held a sleek looking spear with an expert grip. 'Mirajane', on the other hand, wore a pair of skin-tight black pants with a dark jacket over a plain white shirt and held no weapons. That they were beautiful went without saying yet what struck him the most was the guarded stance they held and the look in their eyes.

Whoever they were, these two were deadly.

"Not that I doubt your judgement, Naruto, but I'm not quite certain how well they will fare against our new problem."

"I'll worry about that." Naruto waved dismissively. "I'll have a batch of clones join them to throw off Kisame and Itachi while we circle around and focus on the main objective. Any objections?"

Sakura, Genma and Chiyo were about to question him when Temari, for the first time since the mission had started, spoke up. "If you're confident that this will work then let's go." When Chiyo turned to scold her, Temari's eyes blazed with rage. "It's _my_ brother we are going out to save and we've wasted enough time as it stands."

With all objection silenced, Naruto summoned a quintet of clones, four of whom transformed into copies of a member of the team as Mira did the same to herself and her partner before the new 'group' raced away.


	30. Kazekage Rescue: Chapter 29

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 29**

"Hello Naruto-san." Itachi's greeting was delivered in a calm, polite tone as his quarry and his team skidded to a halt before him. "I'm afraid this will have to be the end of the road."

"Itachi…" The blond growled angrily. "I don't have time for this! Get the hell out of my way!"

"Naruto… take it easy…" Kakashi cautioned, feeling the fury lashing within his former student and noting the way his eyes flashed crimson. Knowing that they were trapped in an unavoidable situation, the jōnin barked out an order: "Genma! Take charge of the team and get them to the rendezvous; Sakura, with me!" When the team seemed hesitant, he barked out a "Go!" to get them moving.

It was at that point that the second member of the Akatsuki spoke up: "You seem pretty confident in their skill, Hatake; Sasori and Deidara might not be the most powerful but they'll definitely be too much for those poor fools."

"We just need them to hold out long enough for us to join them!" Naruto snarled, his rage finally consuming him as he sprang forward with his fist cocked back, ignoring Kakashi's cry of warning.

"Like you'll survive this encounter!" Kisame roared back as he brought Samehada to bear on the charging jinchuriki.

At the same time, Itachi surged forward in a blurring motion to engage with Sakura, his Sharingan spinning hypnotically.

The fight was on.

‹‹‡››

Five hundred meters away and heavily suppressing their chakra, the _real_ rescue team crept through the forest, Neji giving them updates regarding the ongoing battle.

"Whoever those two are, Naruto, they're certainly living up to your expectations." Neji reported. They were in luck; the energy Naruto's summons utilized was intrinsically different from chakra and so the Hyūga had been able to keep tabs on, and differentiate between, the clone and the summoned women. "Neither has dropped their disguises and are engaging Kisame and Itachi much like Haruno-san and Hatake-san would."

The idea that two strange, summoned women had instantly grasped his fighting style enough to -even _temporarily_ \- fool Itachi rankled Kakashi yet again and he tried to bring the matter up with Naruto.

As usual, the blond postponed all inquiries till _after_ the mission. This time, however, he decided that they had crossed the minimal distance required for them to utilize their chakra to get the hell out of dodge and, thanks to the heavy amounts of Kyubi's chakra that his clone had been emitting, the battlefield was saturated in enough chakra to obfuscate their own usage.

"Let's move!" He ordered as he channeled a surge of chakra to his feet and took off into the foliage at more than triple his usual speeds. Temari was quick to follow and the rest instantly joined them, Hana whistling sharply to get her boys (who were much farther ahead) to get sniffing.

They had a Kage to find and had lost more than enough time already.

‹‹‡››

"Enough!" Itachi growled as he kicked away from his opponent, prompting Kisame to break away from his fight as well. On the opposite end, 'Kakashi' had a hand on Naruto's shoulder, keeping him in place.

"Something wrong?" 'Sakura' asked with a smirk as she cracked her knuckles. "Because I was just getting started."

"These are not our targets, Kisame." Itachi murmured, his eyes never leaving the trio. "Something's wrong." It wasn't very obvious; in fact, most people would never have noticed it but something about 'Kakashi' and 'Sakura's fighting forms felt… off. It certainly helped that, through his sharingan , he had been able to note the shell of dense, unidentifiable energy that constantly ran just beneath their skin.

"I wondered how long it would take until you uncovered our ruse." 'Kakashi' smirked, a hand on his hip. "You two certainly haven't lived up to the hype surrounding you."

The shot hit its intended target and Kisame brandished his weapon with a snarl. "Wanna bet on that, red-eye?"

"Gladly." A feminine voice purred into his ear and only his years of experience saved him from being skewered on the end of an intricately designed spear.

Itachi had performed a sealless substitution the instant he felt the presence behind his partner, getting himself out of the line of fire and onto a tree branch. When he glanced back at the spot he had just vacated, his eyes widened.

There was a white haired woman there, standing beside a spear-toting, purple-robed redhead, and her eyes were locked onto his as a wicked smile curled her lips.

"Let's play~"

The next instant, Itachi was dodging as fast as he could, sharingan working overtime to predict the white haired woman's moves which she seemed to always change by the slightest of degrees at the last moment. 'Her innate agility must be insane for her to fight like this!'

"Come now, _genius_ ~" The words were like iced over velvet; at once smooth yet cold and almost venomous. "Show me, Itachi, the skill for which you are so greatly feared!"

Even as the battle raged within the treetops, so too did another duo battle on the forest floor, pseudo-sentient blade clashing against an intricately designed spear.

"Your left side is open."

Kisame growled in impotent fury as the shaft of the redheaded woman's spear batted Samehada aside and she took advantage of the aforementioned opening to nick his side, though he was able to twist away from most of the damage. He tried to turn the spin into a kick but she had anticipated such a move and used the butt of her spear to intercept him at the peak of his spin, forcing him to -once again- substitute out of her range.

The instant he appeared, he blitzed through a series of handseals and, with a cry of "Suiton: Mizurappa!" sent a blast of water tearing at her.

The redhead simply sidestepped the blast as she charged toward him, her spear tearing up the ground in her wake. "Linear attacks like those are too one-dimensional."

"Then try this on for size! Suiton: Daibakufu!" Kisame roared, pouring a chunk of chakra into the technique. In response, a torrent of water burst into existence around him, pouring outward and just about flooding the forest floor. Like that wasn't enough, he completed another set of seals and slammed a palm on the ground. "Suiton: Goshokuzame!"

His opponent was just as quick as he was -if not quicker-: the instant she saw the wall of water rushing toward her, she switched out her spear and the _Robe of Yuen_ for her _Sea Empress_ armor, allowing her to take the brunt of the onrushing water without receiving any harm. Then, when Kisame's shark-like chakra constructs came within range, she dispatched them with a few, well-timed blows. When she surfaced, she simply arched an eyebrow at the former Kiri-nin, the message all too clear.

 _Is that it?_

With a snarl, Kisame answered her challenge, unleashing his chakra as he set Samehada loose in the waters. "You're dead bitch."

Beneath the metal plate of her headgear, the redhead's eyes narrowed. "Says the walking sashimi platter."

Meanwhile, in a separate clearing a good distance away, Itachi was locked in battle with one of the most difficult opponents he had ever faced.

"You're not doing a very good job of impressing me, Itachi-kun~"

For the umpteenth time, Itachi had to repress the urge to snarl at the white haired woman as he threw a brace of shuriken at her followed by a quintet of fireballs.

She was certainly the most obnoxious opponent he had ever fought (and he had gone up against _Hidan_ ): her honeyed taunts constantly grating at his stoic resolve as she belittled his every move, daring him to impress her.

It didn't help that she had hounded him almost constantly since the battle began, leaving him to play defensive as she tore through his every attempt to shift the momentum of the fight in his favor: illusions were casually shrugged off, ninjutsu were batted away with her bare hands and her insane fighting style always left him scrabbling to defend.

Loathe as he was to admit it, he couldn't see a way out of this without resorting to using the Mangekyo and, considering how _**that**_ was an absolute last resort in a normal fight, it was a risk he wasn't willing to take in this borrowed body.

'Damn it you two, hurry the hell up!'

‹‹‡››

"Heading into battle with an unclear head is often a precursor to an untimely death, girlie." Chiyo stated gruffly as she sprinted behind the girl. Well, her _puppet_ sprinted: _she_ was nestled in its arms as it sprinted over the more compact soil of the border's rocky grasslands.

She didn't care what the two Konoha nin accompanying her thought; no matter how many platitudes the young ones on the council threw at her feet, she knew she wasn't the spry kunoichi she once was.

 _Besides_ , she thought a tad snarkily, _I'm darned well old enough to do as I please anyway._

"No offense, Chiyo-sama, but I think this is the kind of mission that one doesn't go into with a 'clear head.'" Sakura replied shortly, her emotions still bubbling just beneath the surface.

She still didn't know which annoyed her more; being forced to face how much of an idiot she had been or having _Ino_ of all people be the one to point it out.

' _He wasn't insulting you Sakura! You're supposed to be his teammate so I'm seriously lost on how you managed not to see that! His comments may have come out… wonky but they were just his way of showing that he cares!'_

' _... we had parents, Forehead, parents that loved us and cared for us and… and Naruto never had that. The closest he had to a family before your team got thrown together was having Sandaime-sama and the Ichirakus show him a bit of kindness. Plus, for the past three years, he's been stuck in God-knows-where training his ass off only to come home and hear that a close friend has been kidnapped by the bogeymen of our world? He's tense beyond belief, Sakura, so maybe his art of self-expression's taken a hit. You need to be there for him, not throw a tantrum.'_

' _You said you see him as a brother? Then treat him like you would your own brother.'_

"You're drifting off again." Chiyo's (annoying, if she was being honest,) voice cut through her thoughts and she was forced to focus on the task ahead.

Naruto, Kakashi, Ino and Temari had gone ahead to deal with the seal barrier Hana's ninken had encountered while herself, Chiyo, Genma, Neji and Hana circled around, seeking any weak spots in the barrier's field that they could exploit.

"Sakura, it's quite obvious that you're a bit conflicted here." Genma's comment slashed into her thoughts. "Seeing as we've already gone round this barrier without success, mind sharing what's on your mind?"

Sakura did _not_ want to share what was on her mind.

She prayed for a distraction.

The barrier collapsed.

Everyone got their game faces on and dashed off, their pink-haired companion's issues little more than an afterthought.

They arrived just in time to see Naruto smash Deidara's blond mug right _through_ the rocky wall, Kakashi and Temari diving after the incredibly pissed jinchūriki even as Ino dragged a deathly pale Gaara off to the side.

"I suppose you're our opponent, then?" Genma asked as he maneuvered his team till they were between Sasori and Ino, who was now busy trying to stabilize the Kazekage.

"I am" The short, masked figure stated gruffly.

"Good, good." The Konoha jōnin grabbed a kunai in the reverse grip and took a ready stance as Sakura and Chiyo moved to cover his flank while Hana and her ninken stood guard around Ino. "Just making sure."

As if on cue, Sakura smashed a fist into the ground, sending a fissure racing toward the Akatsuki member. At the same time, Chiyo's puppets dashed forward, moving ahead of Neji, ready to intercept Sasori should he attempt a direct charge while Genma released a fireball.

The fight was on.

‹‹‡››

The instant Deidara felt the cool air outside the cavern hit his back, he unleashed a flurry of spiders from his hand, directing his little explosive critters to get as close to the bastard Kyuubi jinchūriki before detonating. He didn't care whether or not they damaged the boy as he hadn't charged them enough to be particularly powerful; rather, they were designed such that, when the blond jinchūriki detonated them with powerful wind blast, Deidara was able to use the resulting blast wave to push himself away from the boy.

His hand was a blur, dipping into his clay pouch as he swiftly molded his preferred method of transport: a giant bird that he sat astride.

Finally prepared to go on the offensive, he never saw the blade of wind headed his way until it was nearly upon him, forcing him to swiftly abandon his creation mere moments before an arc of ultra sharp wind sliced his construct in twain.

"Fucking bastard!" He roared as he crafted a trio of smaller birds that he sent to hound the duo of Kakashi and Naruto only to watch them get violently shredded by a blast of wind from Temari.

"You're dead you piece of shit!" The fan wielding girl snarled as she launched into a series of spins and twists, her fan moving about in almost hypnotic swirls that unleashed death with every swing she completed.

Taking them on would be an exercise in futility and Deidara knew it: a fan wielder from Suna, Sharingan no Kakashi, a renowned lightning user and the Nine Tails' host; his chances of getting out with a victory were slim at best and that was _if_ _he had both hands_.

He grinned maniacally as he took a couple of chakra-enhanced leaps backward, his single hand moulding faster than he ever had. "Come on! I show you the true meaning of **art**!"

Naruto dashed forward with an explosive burst of energy, closing the gap faster than the Mad Bomber had expected, his kunai humming beneath the coating of wind he had given them as he launched into a complex series of stabs and slashes at the missing nin.

To his credit, Deidara managed to dodge most of the attacks while taking only minimal damage, his hand moving in a blur as he constantly worked on his clay.

Abruptly, Naruto lost his footing when the ground beneath his left foot exploded, allowing Deidara to slip further away.

"You think you've got me pinned? Well come on!" He laughed as he released a dozen snakes into the ground, followed by a quartet of smaller birds. "Let's see what you've got!"

"Both of you, **jump**!" Neither Temari nor Naruto hesitated for an instant, leaping as high as they could the instant Kakashi ordered them to as the silver haired man slammed his palms on the ground. "Raiton: Iakazuchi Hakai!"

The Lightning Current was instantly drawn into the ground, mercilessly hunting down and destroying every last spider mine Deidara had implanted. At the same time, Naruto unleashed a hail of wind-enhanced kunai that tore through the kamikaze birds while Temari let loose a blast of wind that smashed Deidara through a tree into a copse.

A quick body flicker from his position mid-air had Naruto positioned right over the downed missing nin and he lashed out with extreme prejudice. "Rasengan!"

At that very moment, all other fights came to an end:

Erza, deciding that she had gleaned all she could from her battle, leaped out of the water, requipped into her _Lightning Empress_ armor and unleashed a bolt of lightning into the makeshift lake, electrocuting the missing nin that had taken refuge within;

Mira, having grown bored of her fight, closed the distance between herself and Itachi and detonated a miniature Soul Extinctor in his face;

Sakura, following a tactic Genma had employed based on Chiyo's intel, was able to deliver a powerful right straight into Sasori's true body, destroying the puppet for good.

It was over.

They had defeated the Akatsuki and saved the Kazekage.

‹‹‡››

 _ **Before you tell me that Erza and Mira can't beat Kisame and Itachi let me remind you of one fact: these are NOT canon versions of the Fairy duo.**_

 _ **According to Yagami's original work, both of them were generals in the war for Makai, a war that lasted more than a decade. That means they're well versed in the art of war. More importantly, though, Erza is described as an 8-tailed vixen who is just a rung beneath the Kyubi in terms of power and Mira is described as her {Erza's} equal.**_

 _ **And, as far as I recall, Yagami's versions didn't utilize the same skillsets as the actual Fairy Tail duo.**_

 _ **That means, as far as this fight is concerned, Itachi and Kisame went up against two 8-tailed jinchuriki; both with incredible versatility in combat.**_

 _ **Also: Deidara simply stood no chance. A pissed off Temari + Kakashi + an ACTUALLY WELL TRAINED Naruto, all of whom had studied up on their opponents beforehand (remember the dossiers**_ _ **from the last chapter?**_ _ **) versus just the Mad Bomber? Easy pickings.**_

 _ **Against Sasori: If JUST Sakura and Lady Chiyo could take him out then I'm pretty sure the addition of two (let's underplay Genma and Neji here) B-rank jonin and an Inuzuka that can utilize**_ _ **3**_ _ **Spinning Fang techniques without ever leaving a spot sounds like a recipe for a decently quick takedown.**_

 _ **Hope this explains things.**_

 _ **Also: apologies if the fights seemed short; I simply wasn't particularly interested in scripting out long-winded combat scenarios.**_


	31. Kazekage Rescue: Chapter 30

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 30**

Seated at one of the rooftop tables their hotel had provided, beneath the starry sky, Naruto mentally took stock of the mission they had just completed.

Successful as they had been, they were not without drawbacks: the Akatsuki had -somehow- continued extracting the Ichibi from the Kazekage and, in the end, Ino's best efforts simply weren't enough to anchor the biju to the Kazekage's body. Short of a jinchuriki, no one alive had the chakra reserves to reverse the process that was already near completion as at the they had arrived.

It had been nothing short of a miracle that the Yamanaka heiress had successfully anchored the Kazekage's soul to his body, thus saving him.

The Ichibi had been captured, though, and Ino had been poisoned during the final stages of the battle with Sasori.

With Sasori's puppet body destroyed, the man had taken his secrets to the grave and, as Mira and Erza had revealed, the Itachi and Kisame duo they had fought being -now dead- transformed moles, three sources of information regarding the Akatsuki had been taken off the table.

'Good thing I didn't kill Deidara.' Naruto thought as he mentally struck out the first three. It had been a stroke of luck that the Mad Bomber had taken the brunt of the _rasengan_ to his remaining good arm, resulting in it being blown up and allowing Kakashi to take him into custody much more easily.

Still, even after being viciously tortured by some of Suna's foremost experts, the missing nin had remained mum, bringing their information gathering attempts to a halt, at least for now.

In the eyes of the Village, he had succeeded yet, on a personal level, it simply didn't feel that way, a feeling compounded by the knowledge that he couldn't talk to one of his foremost confidants due to the seal wising up.

"There you are Naruto."

Naruto stiffened imperceptibly at the voice and chose to remain silent.

Kakashi took the seat beside his former student and spent a few moments staring at the shifting dunes in the distance. "You did a good job, today."

"Any news on Ino and Gaara's conditions?"

"Sakura's cleared them." Kakashi replied. "Temari-san is with her brothers in the Kazekage's private wing. That's the east wing of the sixth floor of the Hospital."

"And Ino?"

"'Piggy' will be up and about within forty-eight hours." Kakashi smiled at his student but then frowned when he didn't even receive a glance. "Is something wrong, Naruto?"

"Let's cut to the chase, shall we?" The statement was cold, harsh, and it certainly caught the jonin off guard. "You want to know about Erza and Mirajane."

Seeing that his former student was in no mood for winded conversations, the jonin nodded. "Please understand, Naruto, how strange this is. You returned from your training trip with Jiraiya-sama accompanied by two retainers only to reveal that you can summon them? And that they are _individually_ capable of taking on an S-ranked missing nin? You must admit that it is quite odd."

"Your point?"

"My-my _point_?!" Kakashi sputtered in shock. Did he not know what this meant? "Naruto, my _point_ is that if this gets out, it _will_ have consequences!"

"Then I'll just beg the rest of the team to put a lid on this." He shrugged casually, seeming utterly unaffected by the thought.

Kakashi's jaw might as well have clanged off the ground, so shocked was he. "Naruto, there's a saying in the Intelligence circles: _it stops being a secret when more than one person knows; more than three and it's public knowledge._ Naruto, _**six**_ Konoha nin know about this! I mean, if only Sakura and I knew then I wouldn't be so worried-"

"I would."

Two simple words yet their implication struck with the force of a train.

"In fact, if it were just Sakura, I'd be okay with it." The blond sat back and stared at his former sensei. "I'll be blunt, Kakashi: I don't trust you." The statement was delivered with an air of finality that left the jonin stunned. "No, more accurately, I _can't_ trust you."

When Kakashi finally found his voice, he sounded broken. "Why?"

"Tell me, which of my parents do I remind you of: my dad, who not only trained you but took you in when it seemed like your world was crumbling around your ears? Or maybe my mom, who took you in and treated you like a younger brother?" Each word was a dagger to his soul, tearing in and leaving gaping wounds, and he knew that he deserved each one. "I wonder, which of them would be more disappointed in you? I mean, Jiraiya had his reasons and, when he had time, he did his damned best to make up for it but you? Even if you couldn't take time out of your undoubtedly busy schedule, what excuse do you have for abandoning me even when I was placed directly in your care?

"You want to know why I can't trust you? Well maybe when you get your head out of those books of yours you'll finally realize what the real world is like and then maybe, just _maybe_ you'll get a clue."

Naruto stood up, stretched and turned to walk away. "You'll get to know about Erza and Mira when everyone else knows and not a second before."

Kakashi sat there, rooted to his seat for hours on end, wondering how he had engineered his worst nightmare with his own hands.

‹‹‡››

By the time he got back to his room, Naruto was struggling to keep his eyes open, the fatigue slowly creeping on him. He was bone-achingly tired as he crumpled into the bedside couch yet he had one final stop before he could hit the sack.

For what was probably the first time since he had first summoned her, he walked down the dank tunnels that his seal manifested as, seeking the giant gate that held back the Queen of Makai.

When he arrived, the changes were glaring: the gate, bearing only vertical bars that stretched up till they merged with the dark heights of the seal-scape had become a grid of bars, the vertical now joined by a series of horizontal steel bars and the lock, which had appeared as a simple seal when he had first encountered it, was now fastened by multiple lengths of golden chains.

It had been a jarring experience: he had tried to summon her before leaving Konoha to tell her about the mission only to feel his own chakra get violently slung back into his face as the seal rejected his attempt.

He remembered the feelings of panic, rage and then despondence surge within him, nearly overwhelming him, before he realized that they were _not_ his; he remembered his attempts to get into his own mindscape to speak to her only to be violently rebuffed at every turn.

Most of all, he remembered her quietly explaining what had happened to him: the seal had -somehow- figured out the loophole they were exploiting and had gone into a sort of 'lockdown' state as it tightened itself even further.

He remembered it all too vividly.

"Hey…" His voice was subdued as he walked up to the gate and placed a hand over one of the spaces in the grid, feeling a smooth, glass-like surface beneath his palm, though he saw no such thing. "Are you there?"

"Where would I be?" She sounded upset, borderline infuriated, really, but the light tingle he felt in his palm was enough to let him know that none of her rage was directed at him. "I can't go anywhere anymore now can I?"

He could understand why she was upset: getting a taste of freedom only to have that be taken away could break even a strong willed person; to have that happen twice within the same half-century, to someone of her incredible power…

"I alerted Erza and Mira to what happened. They've got the news across so I should be able to summon Levy by the time we return to Konoha." Naruto stated, detailing his efforts to get her out of this seal. "As far as getting the key from Jiraiya… that's slow going. He… doesn't exactly trust you yet."

"When it rains, it pours."

"Hey! I do not want any of that negativity from you!" Naruto rebuked her sharply before sighing and continuing in a softer tone. "I don't care what it takes, even if I have to go through every last fūinjutsu scroll on the planet; I will get you out of here."

"I believe you, Naruto, it's just…" A huge crimson eye opened from the depths of the cage and the blond could see the depth of the emotions within. "I'm tired of being stuck behind bars."

"I promise you, Kyuubi; I will get you out of here and back to your peak and that's a promise."

With his vow renewed, the blond allowed his mind to float back up to full consciousness. As he laid on his bed, he made a mental note to check up on Ino the next morning.

Finally, the exhaustion of the day's events took over him and he slept.

‹‹‡››

'Okay, what in all the royal fucks hit me?' Ino wondered as she slowly opened her eyes. She could tell that she had been out of commission for a while due to how her body seemed reluctant to adhere to her commands, one of the many tips Anko had quite literally beaten into her squad, just as she could tell that whatever it was, she hadn't been knocked out by physical damage; no part of her body ached enough for that to be the reason.

'Let's see: I was just about done with the Kazekage, had his mind stable and everything, Forehead and the others were tearing things up against Sasori…' It was slow going but she was able to push through the slog of her memories to piece together what had happened. 'Son of a bitch! That wooden piece of shit got me with a senbon! Fucking pile of maggot-ridden tinder!'

It made sense: the way she was feeling matched how she felt those whenever she had the poor luck of sparring against a pissed-off Anko. The woman had only two rules in such spars: no maiming and _definitely_ no kill shots so punches, kicks, jutsu and poisons were all leveled against her opponent.

"Ugh I **hate** poisons." She groaned as she finally sat up, taking in her surroundings as she went: the large dressing table opposite her that sported a decent-sized mirror -'Okay, the bed hair has _got_ to go!'-; the large, partially shut window to her left that afforded her a glance at the brilliant, almost glowing sands beyond; the couch opposite the window; the slightly open door to her right that seemed to lead into a bathroom; the trolley being pushed through the door by-

"Woah! Sorry Ino!" Naruto hastily apologized as he quickly stepped back and yanked the door shut.

'I wonder why he rushed out?' She frowned as she stretched languidly before getting out of the bed and walking over to the trolley he had just delivered, scratching her bare ass as she moved.

Then she froze and looked down.

"I get the distinct feeling that I'll have to murder Forehead sometime in the not too distant future."

‹‹‡››

'Sakura, I am going to prank your ass until it hurts!' Naruto vowed as he rested his forehead against the door, desperately trying to clear his mind of the image that had -essentially- been burned onto it.

Simply put, he had **not** expected to be hit with the vision that was an underwear clad Ino and his treacherous eyes had lingered, taking in her toned thighs and the swells of her breast, accentuated by the tiny purple thong and bikini-top combo Sakura had undoubtedly gotten the Yamanaka heiress into.

 _I am_ _ **not**_ _Jiraiya; I am_ _ **not**_ _Jiraiya; I do_ _ **not**_ _ogle without permission._

It didn't matter that Kyuubi and Tenten had pretty much given him a free pass to shag just about any girl that caught his fancy; common decency dictated that _he_ had to have caught _her_ fancy before he shagged her.

Of course, the war between his libido and common decency had never been so violent as at that moment, especially since he knew that Ino damn well fancied him.

For the first time since his sexual awakening, he fully understood what Jiraiya saw the world as and why the Toad Sage had fallen to the Dark Side.

' _I am_ _ **not**_ _Jiraiya; I am_ _ **not**_ _Jiraiya and I have_ _ **no**_ _intention of giving the Old Toad the satisfaction of knowing that I might have fallen.'_

He was in the middle of his self-denial chants when the door was yanked open and he toppled inside.

It was a comical sight: Naruto's wide-eyed stare as he fell forward contrasted with the fading look of smugness on Ino's face just before he collided with her, the two of them falling over in a tangle of limbs.

'Yup, there's no denying it.' Naruto thought as he rested his head between her purple-clad boobs. 'I am a fucking pervert.'

"Do you have any intention of getting off me?" He glanced up at her twinkling eyes, ears between her mounds, and he knew that he was sunk.

"Do you want me to?"

"Only so you can- oh~" Ino moaned as his hands came up and cupped her breasts, gently kneading them through their fabric confines. "Nah- Naruto~ Privacy!"

"Not a problem." He muttered and his foot found the edge of the door and he yanked it shut. Then, he released her tits and pushed himself up so he could look at her, a moment of seriousness marring the steam that had been building "You sure about this?"

"Shut up and get back to work."

"Not very succinct are you?" He grinned as he dropped back into the warmth of her bosom, his fingers digging under the edges of her bra to get at her nipples.

"Screw words~"

"I'd rather screw you." With a deft application of wind chakra, he sliced through the center of her bra, prompting a squawk from her, and pulled the pieces away to stare at her delectable bosom. "But damn these ladies are beautiful."

"Yeah well I liked the bra that covered them about as much as you like them." She groused, an exercise in concentration considering how much pleasure radiated from her nipples.

"Blame Sakura." Naruto shrugged as he began to move downward, his mouth planting millions of kisses wherever they went. "It was such a nice day before she tricked me into bringing you breakfast."

"I'm guessing- oh God!- I'm guessing she's been keeping an eye on me this whole time?"

"Exclusively." He murmured as he traced the sleek outlines of her abdominal muscles with his tongue. "In retrospect, I should have suspected something when she approached me this morning."

Ino's mind swirled as he moved a hand down, slipping beneath her pantie line to beging gently massaging her pubic mound and it was taking greater effort than she could have imagined to groan out a response. "Two birds with one stone."

Naruto -knowing how much it would drive her crazy- paused and stared at her. "What?"

"Sakura kinda sorta admitted that she finds Shikamaru sexy in a 'lazy, I don't give a fuck' kinda way. Her words." Naruto's responding laugh never made it out of his mouth as she lurched up and, hooking her hands around his neck, proceeded to give him the mother of all steamy kisses. "Shut up. Fuck me."

"Gladly."

He didn't, though; not yet. Instead, he went down on her like she had never experienced before, his hands constantly on her; kneading her breasts, teasing her nipples, frigging her clit while his mouth feasted on her honeypot.

He had her on the verge of release in what felt like moments… and then left her on the knife's edge, her muscles tensed in readiness for a climax that he denied.

Again.

And again.

By the third time, she was so desperate that she grabbed onto his hair -painfully- and humped against his face like a woman possessed, groaning as she felt him finally give in to her demands.

It was like all her denied orgasms slamming into her at once: her back arched like a drawn bow, every muscle fibre tensed so much that they hummed, her toes curled in until the joints popped, her skin flush and slick with sweat, eyes shut so tight that they hurt…

So powerful was her orgasm that she froze in that exact posture for what felt like hours, her face contorted in a rictus of absolute pleasure.

And then, it was all over.

She crumpled onto the ground like a puppet whose strings had just been snipped, her muscles twinging with powerful aftershocks that blotted out all sensations but the feel of his body pressed up against hers.

"You okay?" His voice was a pleasurable rumble against her neck, resonating with the twinges in her muscles, his hot breath -somehow- chilling against her skin.

"You've killed me." She whispered back, feeling so relaxed that even speaking felt -to quote her teammate- troublesome. "Now I know why Tenten gave me free reign to come at you: she knew you'd kill me and she'd have no competition." What she didn't tell him -at least, not yet, she decided with a smirk- was that, even as she spoke, she could feel a surge of energy building within her, wiping away any and every trace of tiredness in her and leaving her raring to go.

She listened to him laugh at her comment, a deep, belly-laugh that she had come to associate with him at his most unguarded moments. His hands had never stopped moving, leaving feathery touches all over her skin. "I'm guessing Sakura's redeemed herself in your books?"

"I suppose she's helped lighten her sentence." She replied airily, lifting a leg to rub along his thighs only to freeze. "Is there a reason you're still clothed?"

"You didn't exactly give me a chance to get out of them now did you?"

With a sudden blur of motion, she was staring down at him, holding herself up with her hands on either side of his head in a dreadfully familiar pose. "You've got your chance now bud." He glanced meaningfully at her arms and then arched an eyebrow at her to which she just smirked. "You're Konoha's most unpredictable ninja; I'm sureyou'll figure _something_ out."

His grin was every bit the vulpine creature she knew he carried inside as he promptly channeled his chakra into a burst of wind blades that pretty much _exploded_ out of his body.

It was a testament to his incredible finesse with his primary element that the wind was sharp enough to utterly shred his clothes and powerful enough to send her hair flying yet not nick an inch of her rosy skin.

Ino arched an eyebrow at him as her hair fell, forming a curtain around their heads. "Geez, showoff much?" Though she did her best to curtail the impulse, she couldn't resist raking her eyes over his now revealed body and then she found herself fighting the urge to drool.

 _Move over, Adonis, there's a new bod god in town._

"You expect me to believe that you're upset when you're eyeing me like I'm on your dinner platter?" His smirk was every bit as challenging as the look in his eyes and Ino simply couldn't resist.

She lowered her body as slowly as she could, drawing out the moment of contact as long as she could until her nipples -finally- touched his chest, eliciting a low hiss from him. Delighted by his response, she shook her shoulders, sending her tits flying in circular motions, drawing random shapes on his pecs with her nipples. She watched him squeeze his eyes shut and she silently thanked Anko for being such a bitch about the physical fitness of her squad -which was the only reason her arms hadn't given up on her yet.

Then, she took it up a notch, lowering herself even more until her boobs were crushed between his rock hard chest and hers and then began sliding sinuously up and down his body. It gave her a heady feeling, pleasuring him like this and she silently swore to have some oil on hand for next time she chose to do this.

For the next couple of moments, she stuck to simply teasing him like that, steadfastly ignoring his throbbing cock as she worked until she saw his hands twitch.

Then, she switched tact again, dropping to his groin to lather his -pretty damn impressive!- member in her saliva before grabbing hold of his turgid shaft and jacking him off with short, sharp tugs. She could feel his cock throb beneath her palms as she worked, occasionally drooling even more spit onto the head of his cock whenever she felt it begin to dry out.

"By the fucking Sage-!"

Ino smirked when he cursed, knowing that she had him fighting to maintain his own control and she once again stepped things up, dropping one hand to none-too-gently fondle his balls while playing with his cock-head with her tongue.

She could feel the quickening throb of his pulse through his dick as she hastened her tug-job even as she teased he crown of his shaft with her teeth and she knew that he was speeding inexorably toward his release.

To Naruto, the combination of sensations was overpowering: the feel of her soft yet callused hands playing with his genitals; her moist, smooth tongue lapping the tip -and occasionally flicking at the slit- of his shaft… it was driving him insane.

Then, she let him go for an instant, prompting the beginnings of a groan, only to smash his cock in the cleavage of her C-cup titties while inhaling whatever lengths poked out.

The groan died in his throat as he came explosively, filling her mouth with his first two blasts and forcing her to back off lest she choke.

'On the plus side,' he thought with a grin as he sat up and watched her gasp from beneath her heavily cum-splattered face and lips, 'this is one hell of a sight!'

As if she could read his mind -'And that's not impossible.' he thought- she glared at him through cum-laden eyelashes. "You're archiving this image aren't you?"

"Somehow, I feel like a 'no' would be the wrong answer."

Her answering smirk was all the answer he needed. "You're _definitely_ not the dunderhead that left three years ago." Languidly pulling away from him, she sensually scraped off every bit of cum off herself -taking _extra_ meticulous care with the cleaning of her tits- before grinning impishly. "Yum~"

His cock surged right back to full mast.

"Now…" She purred as she gently pushed him to the ground again and crawled over him, shifting his cock to align with her cunt. "Anatomy class is in, Uzumaki. Let's see if you can score full points…" With that, she dropped onto his cock and immediately groaned at the incredible surge of pleasure that shot through her. "Oh~ fu~ck!"

Naruto, chomping at the bit to _really_ get going, clamped both hands onto her waist to steady her before rocking his hips upward, feeling the muscles in her quim rhythmically clench and release his cock as it dragged up and down her insides.

Not even three pumps later and she came, a silent shudder marking the arrival of her orgasm.

Naruto simply powered through it, slowly but surely increasing his pace as he went, forcing her to keep riding the ever climbing waves of pleasure as she twisted and contorted on him, seeking an escape from the pleasure her body gloried in.

"No… more…" Her contrary cries came out in hoarse gasps; her brain begging him to stop even as her body craved an eternity in this pleasurable high. "Please… no…. I can't… more…"

After a particularly strong trio of back-to-back orgasms, she collapsed bonelessly onto him, and he used the opportunity to capture her mouth in a steaming kiss that slowly but surely took her mind off the utterly mind-blowing orgasms that ripped through her core.

With her mind returning to her, she decided to become an active participant and started undulating her hips in time with his thrusts, pushing herself as much as Naruto to the brink.

Naruto for his part simply encircled her waist with his arms and hit the gas, pistoning in and out of her as fast as he could without breaking her rhythm.

Moans rang around the room now, with neither party certain whose they were and the air grew steamy with the force of their fucking.

Finally, Ino slammed her hands onto his chest, arched her back as far as it could go (giving him a spectacular view of her breasts) and unleashed an ecstasy filled scream that just about blew out his eardrums.

With such a powerful orgasm, her cunt spasmed like it had been electrocuted and the exquisite feeling of her cunt writhing madly around his cock was enough to set Naruto off to a bellowing release of his own, flooding her insides as surely as she drenched his chest.

Wiped out by the force of their climax, Ino collapsed onto his chest, gasping as hard as he did.

"Oh. My. Wow!" Ino murmured as she slid off his chest and snuggled into his side, ready to snooze away all her pleasantly aching muscles. "You know, the only way this could have gone any better was if you'd plucked my maidenhead."

The words stunned Naruto to such a degree that his only response - _after_ _five minutes of processing time!-_ was an unintelligible "Whu- huh?!"

The Yamanaka heiress who was already beginning to drift off, giggled airily at him. "For such a stud, you're still quite dense." When he didn't reply, she leaned up and stared into his slightly confused -'And panicking' she noted absently- eyes and smiled softly. "Well, while not admitting to any thing here, but I might have come across some old, dopey novels my mom used to read and gotten hooked myself on the dashing samurai saving the young princess and her giving him one of the greatest honors a woman can: her virginity."

"But… but-" He paused and then swallowed deeply. Even then, when he spoke, his throat was dry and his voice raspy. "Why me?"

"Because, come what may, Yamanaka Ino fully believes in you and is ready to go to hell and back for you, Uzumaki Naruto." She gently kissed his forehead, then his nose and then, very tenderly, his lips. "You've got me in your corner and I'm _**never**_ leaving." She smirked at his stupefied gaze as she finally dropped back to his side and began to doze off.

"I'll always be beside you, Naruto.

"Count on it."

‹‹‡››

 _ **A~nd done!**_

 _ **The Kazekage rescue arc is completed with Ino firmly declaring her stance regarding Naruto.**_

 _ **Yep: mind-blowing sex tends to**_ _ **precisely**_ _ **that effect.**_

 _ **On the other hand: how exactly is Naruto going to spin the issue of Mira and Erza easily taking out S-ranked 'bogeymen-class' shinobi?**_

 _ **What did Yuki find that was so shocking?**_

 _ **Was the death of the Senju simply a coincidence?**_

 _ **Will Naruto ever see Kakashi as more than a fellow shinobi?**_

 _ **Will the author provide more frequent smut scenes?**_

 _ **And what the fuck was that with Kyuubi?! Why was she re-sealed? Is this the end of her schemes? (*snort* About as likely as the sun randomly turning green tomorrow)**_

 _ **These and many more on the next arc…**_

 _ **Fissures!**_

 _ **Stay tuned!**_

 _ **Read & Review Please.**_

 _ **The Separation.**_


	32. Fissures: Chapter 31

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 31**

 _ **NB**_ _:_ _ **During the flashback sequence, Tenten's real-time conversation will be depicted in bold italics like these**_ _while the flashback itself, spoken words and all, will be in regular italics like these._

"More sake, Genryusai-sama?" The head waitress asked with a slight bow to the older gentleman seated before her.

"Perhaps when my guest arrives." The man replied without taking his eyes off whatever it was that he was staring at in the distance.

Such an action might have been taken as a discourtesy but the head waitress had served long enough to know that the man meant no disrespect.

Genryusai Shiba was simply an eccentric man.

And so, still frozen in her slight bow, she asked: "Will it be the usual then, sir?"

"Make it whatever she wants."

The head waitress' eyes widened for a fraction of a second before returning to the polite mask she usually wore. "Very well sir."

She rose and, with a sharp turn, left his table to supervise the others pending his guest's arrival.

The _Dragon's Breath_ had invested in a special cooler stocked to the brim with the special _Thistle House No 0._ sake that was only **ever** produced in the Land of Blossoms for their number one customer.

In her mind, she pondered over the identity of the unfortunate soul that had crossed the Head of the Genrysai Family.

Because Genryusai Shiba in a good mood _never_ allowed his guests to pick the choice of drinks.

He was eccentric like that.

‹‹‡››

"Hey Mira! Erza! Yuki! Anybody home?" Naruto yelled as he unlocked the door to his apartment with a burst of chakra. "We need to talk about… about…" His line of thought ground itself to a screeching halt the instant he crossed the foyer into his home.

He had expected to summon a quick meeting with Erza, Mira and, if she wasn't busy, Yuki to discuss their cover story now that he had been forced to reveal their battle capabilities to his team and the Hokage.

That line of action was swiftly was swiftly forgotten when he laid his eyes on the sight before him.

"Welcome home Master~" Mirajane purred from her spot in the center of his living room, most of her body concealed by that of Erza _whose breasts she was_ _ **molesting**_!

It wasn't an implied action or an educated guess on his part, no. The two exotic beauties were clothed in diaphanous gowns (white for the redhead and black for the succubus) through which he could see Mira's nimble fingers hard at work on Erza's assets.

His brain was so thoroughly shorted out by the two gorgeous babes in front of him that he never heard the door creak shut behind him; never registered the presence until it was too late.

"What would you have us do, _Naruto-sama_?"

He froze at the feeling of two naked breasts pressing into his back through his t-shirt and two hands kneading at his shoulders through the same piece of clothing.

"Would you fancy a bath?" A third voice murmured from below him, drawing him to lock eyes with Yuki's stormy gray eyes as she slowly lapped at the bulge that was straining to get out of his pants.

"Per-perhaps a meal- ah~!" The sound of Erza's needy moan slammed into him like a ton of bricks and, combined with Mira's flood of pheromones, his rapidly fraying control disintegrated even faster.

"Or maybe you'll just have… _us~_ " The voice behind him -Tenten's, he belatedly realized- was accompanied by a hot gust of air and a sensuous lick along the outside of his ear.

He blew past any semblance of control as he fell upon them like a man possessed, ripping whatever fabric stood in the way of his progress -theirs or his- before utterly _**dominating**_ them.

He kicked things off with Erza: the Knightwalker's usually stoic demeanour hid a truly incredible lust that he knew could bear the brunt of his initial rut.

And rut they did for it could hardly be called anything else: his hips were a blur as they propelled his rod into the hot, grasping wetness of her quim, churning her juices into a froth that Yuki and Mira were only too happy to lap up.

Whatever words Erza sought to speak came forth as unintelligible slurs punctuated by moans and groans as he tore her apart with his harsh pounding until she could take no more and came messily around his throbbing shaft.

Mira didn't hesitate: the instant she felt Erza's incredibly tight woven lust abate, she jumped on Naruto, her arms wrapping around his neck as she mashed her lips into his, pushing to see who would dominate who.

It was no contest: Naruto, as he was at that moment, could have dominated Kyuubi at her full might.

His hands dropped from the small of her back to grip hold of her fleshy ass cheeks, kneading them roughly as he sawed his pussy-slick dick along the curve of her mound, driving her as mad with lust as he until he finally plunged into her.

As with Erza, this was not a romantic session; it was a fuck.

Perhaps not as savage as his time with Erza, his hips were no less of a blur, driving his shaft into her like a jackhammer.

The succubus threw her head back and _wailed_ as her glutes rippled and shook, waves of stinging pain colliding with the ecstatic feeling of his cock _spearing_ through her insides.

"Oh… yes!… pound… me!" Her cries were vocal; clear, even as she all but _squealed_ through a series of rapid-fire orgasms.

 _Smack! Smack! Smack!_

The room was a sauna now; their sweaty exertions heating up the air as the musk of their fucking pervaded the fuinjutsu-expanded room.

Beneath them, Yuki stared up in awe of her master's bestial strength and stamina and her pussy clenched at her furiously moving fingers, seeking even a _tenth_ of the pleasure her master could bestow as her tongue flicked out to catch whatever drops of succubus nectar dripped her way. She was still watching when Naruto came and her pussy _gushed_ at the sight of his balls' almost violent jerks as they pumped what seemed like liters into the Queen of Succubi.

Naruto groaned as he pulled out of Mira's heavenly cunt with a wet 'plop' only to throw his head back as his slimy dick landed into Yuki's hungry mouth. His eyes rolled back in pleasure as she lightly grazed his piss slit with the tongue before _swallowing_ the turgid mast, her throat muscles working overtime to please him.

"Fuck Yuki… you're so damned good at this!"

If she could have, she would have beamed joyously at his comment. Instead, she just chose to up her game by humming.

The vibration of her throat muscles, interspersed by the constricting of said muscles as she swallowed was enough to push him over the edge and he blasted an obscene amount of cum right down her throat such that when he finally pulled out, she felt as though she had just gorged herself on an abundance of food.

Yet, his cock remained at full mast and _that_ , Yuki decided, would simply not do.

And so she crawled out from beneath him and, still on all fours, wiggled her hips _just so_ , such that her tight, toned ass jiggled enticingly at him.

"She's just _begging_ for it isn't she?" Tenten whispered seductively as she ran her hands over his rock-solid abs and Naruto found himself wondering when the brunette had taken over Mira's job. "You should… _teach her a lesson…_ "

On some level, Naruto realized that he was being played; he knew that Tenten was using his lust to manipulate him into doing her bidding.

He couldn't bring himself to the point of caring.

With a smirk, the blond thrust himself roughly into the vixen's pussy, delighting in the joyful way she as his cock parted her cunt walls.

"O~h fuck!" Yuki cried, her eyes rolling into their sockets as her face glowed crimson and her skin shone with glistening sweat. Her modest, B-cup breasts bounced entertainingly as Naruto pumped vigorously back and forth in her aching, distended cunt, his girth stretching her out _oh so wonderfully_ as his head smashed repeatedly against her cervix. "Oh master! Naruto-sama…! O~h fuck me Naruto-sama! You're fucking me s~o good!"

"That's right you foxy little slut," Naruto grunted, roughly fondling her buttocks as his groin rammed into hers violently. "Hump that ass harder!" he leaned forward and bit down on her neck just hard enough to leave a hickey.

Yuki let out a lusty howl, throwing her head and arching her back as she came, her loins burning up from their fucking and her walls crashed tightly against the mass of her master's erection. Her every nerve ending exploded in a burst of ecstasy so powerful that her sight went white.

Naruto, seeing that the white-haired information gatherer was out of it, gently pulled out of her and helped her lie on the ground beside Erza and Mira's recovering bodies.

"And then there was one." He smirked ominously as he turned his attention on Tenten. He could almost _see_ her body shudder in eager anticipation even as he noticed a mischievous look enter her eyes. "Will you come quietly?"

Tenten smirked at the unintended double entendré in his words and she couldn't resist a parting shot. "I'm more of a screamer really." Then, she dived to her left and sprinted away.

Well, she _tried_ to _._

She had scarcely taken a step forward when she caromed off an immovable wall. She shook her head and focused on what she had hit and her eyes widened in faux-shock even as her pussy gushed.

Naruto was there, standing over her, a dark look in his -now crimson- eyes that was at odds with the almost childish smile he wore. "Ready or not, here I come, you can't hide…" The sing-song voice was almost terrifying and the brunette wondered if she hadn't made a mistake. "I'm gonna fi~i-ind you~ and I will take. You. Slow~ly…" _ *****_

"Well… fuck."

His grin turned savage. "Famous last words."

Then, he descended on her and all she knew was _bliss._

‹‹‡››

"The Uzumaki boy is back."

That was it; her first words upon seating at the Genryusai Head's table and she simply jumped into the meat of things.

Such was the way of Ryuudo Yui, the leader of one of Konoha's most powerful economic blocs: no unnecessary bullshit, no pointless courtesy; when there was a problem, her focus was on finding a solution in the fastest, most efficiently effective manner.

That, among other things, was the reason the Genryusai Head had chosen her to be the face of his coalition.

"And so he survives yet another mission." The statement was accompanied by a sharp crack; the butt of a cane striking the wood-paneled ground. "As you predicted."

Yui said nothing, cold, calculating eyes focused on the immaculately dressed older man as her rage simmered.

"What news from _her_ office?"

"The same as always: the Uzumaki's performance was lauded by his teammates. This time, there was even a note from the Kazekage's office; Suna now considers him a hero."

"He is growing."

"What did you expect?" Yui asked acidly, part of her anger pushing past her normally dispassionate facade. "The boy was trained -for three years!- by the same man that forged the bastard Yondaime into the warrior he was. I told you, no, I _warned_ you against letting him leave with the Sannin yet you shut me down. Do you see, Genryusai- _sama_ , where your needless pride-"

" _ **Enough.**_ "

A single word, spoken with the authority of a man who had clawed his way to his position through hell.

For all her blunt tact, Ryuudo Yui had the savvy instincts of a politician. She knew how and when to push and she recognized the signs that her pushing would no longer be tolerated.

"Forgive me, Genryusai-sama, I let my emotions slip."

Genryusai Shiba stared at the contrite-looking woman before him, her shoulder length bob-cut hair veiling her devious green eyes. She was dangerous, that woman: her seemingly plain looks, disguised a terrifying mind whose manipulative instincts and devilish silver-tongue had destroyed a huge swathe of her enemies.

That she was on his side did **not** mean that she was loyal to him.

Still…

"Your arguments to deny him his promotion, though valid, had already drawn too much attention to you in the wake of that invasion attempt." The old man stated calmly, his voice having returned to its slightly lilting rumble. "Had you pushed for him to remain within the village, it would have sparked suspicions."

She had never received this explanation but she was able to swiftly pull forth the events of the time to the fore of her mind and, after a quick analysis, had to agree with him.

She had -following the chunin exam invasion- pushed that Naruto not be promoted on grounds of not showing adequate diversification of skill and a lack of true tactical awareness. Had she pushed that the boy be denied the chance to learn from the Sannin, it might have brought unnecessary attention to her -and ultimately to the bloc she covertly represented.

"So what should our next steps be?" She asked. Yui had ideas of her own but hearing what he had to say might provide a new angle for her.

" _That woman_ has sealed the Uzumaki's complete mission report pending a review by the Jonin and ANBU Commanders." The Genryusai Head said and Yui had to stifle her shock.

Partly at the news -reviews that required the attention of _both_ the Jonin _and_ ANBU Commanders were few and far between and usually implied that something truly baffling (and potentially dangerous) had occurred on that mission.

Most of her shock was, however directed toward the man and his seemingly omniscient information network -the Uzumaki boy had only just returned, after all, and so the decision to review the mission report had to have happened as she made her way over to this meeting.

Yet again she wondered just how dangerous the enigmatic Clan Head was…

‹‹‡››

Hours later, Naruto reclined on his sofa with Tenten, Yuki having returned to maintain her network of information gathering shades while Erza and Mira returned to Makai to check up on their respective domains.

"That was one hell of a surprise." He reiterated for the third time since his arrival, his hands running along her sides as she pressed her back into his chest. "I'm lucky to have you."

"We're all at your service, _Naruto-sama~_ " Tenten giggled a bit before smiling more demurely. "It's really Mira you should be thanking, though." She tilted her head, baring her neck for him and he joyfully took the invitation, nibbling at the throbbing vein. "She was the one with the idea; Yuki and I just helped get Erza into it."

"Must have been a challenge," He murmured, thinking of how stoic the Knightwalker often seemed.

"We got it done didn't we?"

"And I'm all the more grateful for that." He smiled against her shoulder. "So, wanna tell me how you suddenly got so close to them?"

Whatever reaction he had expected, her sudden, almost deathly stillness was most certainly _not_ on the list and it had him swiftly -but carefully- sitting up. "Tenten? Is something wrong?"

The brunette kunoichi wasn't prepared to answer him.

'No,' she admitted to herself as she watched him study her features intently, seeking a hint as to what he might have done wrong. 'I don't _want_ to tell him. I don't want to be the one to tell him about the dark side of Konoha. He can hear it from Erza, Mira, Yuki; _anyone_ but me.'

But she knew that there was no one but herself.

And the longer she remained silent, the longer he fretted needlessly over her, unaware of the shattering truth she now knew.

It wasn't fair on him.

'He deserves to know.'

And so she told him everything she knew.

 **FLASHBACK**

" _ **My team and I had just returned from our mission to Takigakure and, after handing in our reports, I wanted to see you…"**_

 _Tenten couldn't hold back the faint smile on her face as she raced along the rooftops, her form a scarcely seen blur in the night as she headed towards her love's home to regale him with her accomplishments on her mission. She knew that she was displaying quite a number of fangirl-ish traits, what with her almost chronic desire to be in his presence, an overeager willingness to do as he asked and all but she couldn't help it! He was awesome! The awesome-est thing to happen since the discovery of chakra metals!_

 _And so she proceeded with an airy skip to her step as she descended through the rooftop hatch down the stairwell that led to his apartment._

' _It's less his 'apartment' and more his whole building now.' She amended as she walked down the hallway, recalling how Naruto had been presented the deed to the entire four-story building, its ownership transferred from the Village's to his by the Hokage 'to help with his need for increased accommodation.'_

 _Naruto had fallen upon the building like a demented storm, spawning clones willy-nilly and transforming the place -via spit, grit and a shit ton of seals- from a rundown building to a luxury hotel with each floor being allocated to specific purposes (save the ground floor which became the general receiving area for non-personal guests)._

 _His summons, vulpine or otherwise, got the first floor, Tenten had the second, he got the third floor and the top became their armory._

 _He still maintained the rundown exterior, though. The renovation was_ __ _as a result of_ _ **his**_ _hard work and so would only be enjoyed by those he deemed fit._

" _ **I got into your apartment without a hitch and was about to head into your room when I heard voices…"**_

 _Hearing female voices in Naruto's room was in no way a novel experience to her: she knew about Naruto's Kyuubi-granted summoning contract as well as the true nature of his 'retainers,' Mira and Erza._

 _No, what caught her attention and made her decide to remain where she was and eavesdrop on the conversation, was the subject._

" _ **They were talking about you, Naruto, and they sounded extremely pissed off…"**_

" _... that the economic bloc Mira has been keeping tabs on are a bigger threat than we thought." Erza's voice floated out, her normally flirty tone sounding like flint._

" _The records of their actions are all here, Erza-sama." A voice Tenten didn't know stated with an affirmative tone. "The oldest of these date back to before Naruto-sama's birth, at the height of his father's abbreviated reign."_

 _There was a pause, followed by the rustling of paper, then Mira spoke up. "Naruto-sama is caught up in the worst kind of war: an internal war."_

 _Tenten frowned. An_ internal _war? That made no sense; Konoha hadn't experienced such since its early years. And why was Naruto of all people caught up in such?_

 _As if she could hear her thoughts, Mira launched into an explanation. "If my memory serves me right then these actions began six months after Naruto-sama's father instituted an overhaul of the economic laws of the Village. It was an action that came after a series of probes exposed a startling degree of corruption within the Village's economic sector. People were incarcerated, families were forced to completely hand over their ill-gotten fortunes, their names fading into obscurity… It was a messy situation all round and involved prominent individuals and families, shinobi and civilian alike."_

" _ **It wasn't remotely difficult to put the pieces together after that, though Mira still spelt it out…**_

" _If I am right, and I can't find any other answers that fit so perfectly, then the economic bloc we've uncovered are formed from a core of individuals that hate Namikaze Minato for taking away their 'fortunes.'"_

" _Oh fuck…" She didn't even realize that she had spoken out loud; Tenten's mind was still rattled by the implications of Mira's words._

" _Do you understand now, Tenten?" She jolted back to her senses and saw the white-haired succubus staring intently at her, sapphire-like eyes glinting with a cold, barely restrained fury. "Do you understand what Naruto-sama inevitably stumbled into by virtue of his birth?"_

 **END FLASHBACK**

"Well, isn't that wonderful?" Naruto asked, his voice tainted by a bitter fury. "Other kids were born to gifts, fanfare and love. _I_ get the joy of having a huge target on my back simply because some motherfuckers just can't live without their plush blankets. Fucking A."

It annoyed him to learn of yet another form of opposition to his progress and, unlike the whole 'jinchuriki or not' thing, he couldn't blame his father for this.

It was the Hokage's responsibility to watch over the Village and ensure that everything was in order, after all. That he chose to probe the guilty parties was his way of shutting down and cries of foul play before they even sprung up; an act of mercy really. After all, Hidden villages were essentially under their Kages thumb and whatever the leader said was law.

Yet, after being found guilty of their own crimes, those bastards had forged an alliance to make his life hell?!

"Naruto?"

Her voice was soft, tender and filled with worry for him and it prompted him to come to a crucial decision as he tenderly embraced her.

It was a decision he had warred with himself over since Jiraiya's revelation all those months ago but now, his answer was crystalline.

He had to leave Konoha.

Permanently.

 _ **So, we're back in Konoha and not even**_ _ **one**_ _ **chapter in and there's a reveal of a new player.**_

 _ **Plus; some welcome back lovin' for our man of the story! Woo!**_

 _ **Wonderful start.**_

 _ **Of course, if my muse doesn't yank me down another path then the next chapter should include an update on the Senju situation, Kurotsuchi and an intro to a character that has been name dropped in prior chapters.**_

 _ **Might even see what the Akatsuki think of our amped!Naruto.**_

 _ **Later.**_

 _ **PS: I've got a job now so updates might come in a tad slower.**_

 _ **PPS: Review Responses**_

 _ **Regarding the chains: To Kushina or not to Kushina, that is the question, really.**_

 _ **Regarding Ino's maidenhead: She's a member of the Seduction and Infiltration Department in a world that trains kids to be soldiers of war. Screw the romanticized B.S Kishi tried to feed us, there's no way in hell that she'd have maintained her virginity. Otherwise, just pretend that the Academy offers a mandatory 'seduction' class a la chapter 1 of the fic:**_ _ **30 Days of Nothing the Changed the World by bishop2420.**_

 _ **PPPS: A triple update and I haven't even gotten FIVE reviews per chapter?! Come on people! Help a fellow out here!**_


	33. Fissures: Chapter 32

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 32**

 _ **Two Days Prior to Naruto's Return From Suna…**_

Uzumaki Naruto was not, by nature, a patient person.

In fact, his lack of patience was practically hereditary (as anyone who knew Kushina would have attested to) and was the primary reason he had played truant more often than not during his Academy days.

After all, what was the benefit of sitting still and listening to old people drone on about even older things when he could be out there kicking butts and taking names? He wasn't a noob dammit!

Nature, however, could be subverted by nurturing and that was exactly what Jiraiya and Erza had done during his training period using a wide range of techniques.

From meditation to combat scenarios where patience was the only path to victory, they had ensured that he had shed the vast majority of his impatient nature, at least insofar as it concerned a mission.

The Naruto clone in charge of combing through the vast Archives found himself thankful for that training because without it, he was dead certain that he would either have given up, gone insane or simply set the building ablaze, consequences be damned.

"Uzumaki-san we have been at this for well over two weeks, a time period which, thanks to your use of clones, essentially equals about two months of exhaustive research, all to no avail." Shiho sighed as she rubbed her temples. The past week had been the most exhausting one in her life, moreso than even the vetting period prior to her being given the role of the Archivist. Between her oscillating thoughts about whether or not this search would pan out and her duties as a member of the Cryptography unit, her mind had been stretched thin.

"I understand that I am stretching your patience, Shiho-san," - _as I am doing the same to myself-_ "but I cannot shake the feeling that there is something _wrong_ about the demise of the Senju." The clone sighed as it pulled out yet another tome of clan censuses from the shelf he was working through. "I've already noted a somewhat steady decline in their population since the beginning of the Second War. And, before you try to put up an argument-" he smirked behind the frame of the book when he heard her teeth grind shut. "-I've already created and compared their population graphs with those of other clans and the rate doesn't match. Not even the Uchiha, arguably the only clan with an equal -if not greater- degree of notoriety experienced such a decline. In fact, the Uchiha clan population graph experiences a slight _upward_ curve."

Shiho goggled at him as she tried to wrap her mind around what she had just heard.

Even without her six-month stint studying the statistics of populations, common sense would have pointed out the glaring problem he had just dug up: people _died_ during wars, moreso among shinobi than the civilians they protected. Amongst them, high-end clans like the Uchiha, the Senju and the Hyuga were expected to suffer greater losses simply by virtue of their reputation: when any one from those clans stepped out onto the battlefield, the enemies usually redoubled their efforts to kill them.

For the Uchiha clan to have experienced such an upward curve, no matter how slight, meant that there was some form of foul play going on.

Just like that, her brain kicked into overdrive.

"We need mission records from-"

"I have a batch of clones searching for mission records that might help shed light on it." Naruto cut in only to be on the receiving end of a truly fearsome scowl.

"Do you have them searching as far back as in the aftermath of the First War?" When he meekly shook his head, she grunted and spun away, headed into another section of the Archives. "I need every last mission record and post-mission report from the year after Shodaime-sama's death as well as complete population statistics and anything else you think might help!" Her tone had escalated into a yell by the end because she was already racing into the deepest sections of the Archives, her mind tearing through tremendous chunks of data at nigh-impossible speeds.

Anyone who glanced at her thoughts right then would have thought her insane; hell a portion of her own mind questioned the path she was taking but her heart was set on it and she would see it through.

The time period where Naruto had made his observations coincided with the only time in _un_ recorded history that an Uchiha held the position of the ANBU Commander, though their identity, in line with the tradition, had never been revealed.

It was also the period during which Yamanaka Inojin, one of the few people to possess an intellect greater than a Nara's, served as the Village's Jonin Commander.

She needed to find the Pre-Konoha records: the set of documents tendered by the founding families of the Village.

Because, if memory served her right (and she desperately hoped it _**didn't**_ ), the Yamanaka had served most of the Warring Clans era as vassals of the Uchiha.

‹‹‡››

 _ **The Present…**_

Hana once again found herself stunned by the aura of calm confidence Naruto seemed to have grown into as he stood before four of the most powerful people in Konoha, weathering their stoic gazes without so much as a flinch.

"Chūnin Inuzuka, you have been summoned here due to your role as Chūnin Uzumaki's second in command on mission B-1547C9." Tsunade stated, kicking things off. "Your role is to verify the details of said mission as we proceed and to point out any discrepancies as is noted."

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

"Over to you Nara-san."

"Chūnin Uzumaki," Shikaku began, holding up a scroll that held all the relevant details to the day's hearing. The Jōnin Commander considered the action needlessly redundant, seeing as he had already memorized its content yet traditions had to be maintained. "You led the team of Hatake Kakashi, Yamanaka Ino, Shiranui Genma, Inuzuka Hana, Hyuga Neji and Haruno Sakura on mission B-1547C9 correct?"

"Yes, Commander."

"The above mentioned mission was a joint rescue operation between your team, representing Konohagakure no Sato and a team from Sunagakure no Sato, correct?"

"Yes Commander."

"The Sunagakure operatives were the Grand Mistress of the Chikamatsu Troupe, Lady Chiyo and Sabaku no Temari and your objective was to retrieve the Kazekage from the hands of the duo of Iwagakure's Mad Bomber, Deidara and Sunagakure's own Sasori of the Red Sands. Is this correct?"

"Yes Commander."

The sequence of needless questions droned on and Hana found herself fighting away the deliciously tempting fingers of sleep that tugged at her.

The question jolted the Inuzuka back to her surroundings and she noticed that, rather than the Jōnin Commander, the last question had been posed by the Head of the Advisory Council.

Shimura Danzō.

"And _what_ exactly are these retainers of yours?"

Hana found herself suppressing a shudder as her gaze rested -for just the briefest of moments- on the crippled old man and she wished she could trade him out for the old Danzō; the man that had helped her train for the Academy when she was just a wet behind the ears brat that couldn't hold a kunai right. She missed the man that had trained her mother into the hard as nails bitch she was without making her lose an ounce of the passion that so crucially defined her mother.

She missed the old Danzō even though she now understood that _this_ was the real Danzō and her memories were built around a facade.

In the real world, Naruto answered the question as easily as he had the others, not seeming even the slightest bit fazed. "They are the last of a dying summoning clan."

The answer, one they had each suspected during their individual perusals of the mission reports, had three of the Four lean back into their chair.

For the first time since the briefing had begun, the ANBU Commander made his presence known.

The latest in a long line of operatives bearing the 'Tora' mask, the Commander was a nondescript looking man with such an easygoing demeanour that every batch of new recruits thought they could take him for a ride.

They learned the hard way why the leader's call-sign was that of a tiger.

"Which clan would that be?" The ANBU commander asked.

"They aren't so much of a clan as they are a _species_." Naruto clarified. "At least, that's what Jiraiya told me when I discussed this matter with him. They call themselves the ' _Etherious._ '"

Hana's mind raced through its databanks, seeking any references to the term and drew a blank.

It was the same for all the others in the room save Naruto himself.

The Godaime Hokage sat forward, her honey-brown eyes boring into Naruto. "Explain."

And so he did, telling them of how, during his travels with the Toad Sage, they had stumbled upon a group that Jiraiya had deemed capable of one day challenging the Great Five and their subsequent dismantling of the 'Village Hidden in the Sky'. He regaled them with the tale of his battle with Ishidate that had pushed him to his limits and had ended in the ruins of a forgotten civilization with the foreign ninja killed and himself on the verge of death. He explained how he had awoken in the hut of a mysterious woman whose name he knew not and how she had nursed him back to health in exchange for his assistance in locating her lost children. He had explained all this to Jiraiya and the Toad Sage, as a way of paying her back, had kept his ear to the ground, seeking the two in question.

"We found them, as I reported, in a bandit's camp and rescued them. When we returned them to the land I had first met their mother, she was ready to move on and she begged me to keep them in my care." Naruto finished. "I signed the summoning contract their mother provided and swore to keep their secret as long as it did not hamper my responsibilities."

It sounded like nothing short of a fantastical tale, something one would pen down as mere fiction yet, as Hana knew, no one truly understood how summoning creatures were first found. In most cases, the contracts were passed down within families or from master to student and the rare few that had found the contracts were known to staunchly refuse to tell others how they were obtained.

As she stared at the Four, Hana realized that they had the same thoughts: no one knew _precisely_ how the contracts were found and so none could truly argue with Naruto's account.

"How powerful do you think they are?" 'Tora' asked. "And how much of a threat do they pose to the Village?"

"After a spar with each of them, Jiraiya ranked them as mid-S rank in terms of their overall combat ability." Naruto replied immediately. "As regards their threat to the Village, they have assured me that they mean no harm to us. They will not hesitate to defend themselves should they be pushed that far but they have sworn to utilize lethal force only if they are threatened with the same."

"They seem like a threat waiting to happen." Danzō stated, eliciting just the tiniest scowl from Naruto.

"As Tora-sotaichō will ascertain, they haven't been even the slightest bit of trouble since they joined the Village." The blond rejoined, staring the War Hawk dead in the eyes as he hinted at the fact that he knew that his summons had been under surveillance since his return.

The Hokage, the Jōnin Commander, the ANBU Commander and the Head of the Advisory Committee: four of the most powerful people in the Village and they could only stare at him.

"We will decide on the next line of action in light of this new information." Tsunade sighed and rubbed her temples. "Naruto, you are to return in an hour. Hana, you have the day off."

Both chūnin nodded and walked out of the Hokage's office before departing after a final greeting, Hana taking the scenic route while Naruto raced home with a few shunshin jumps .

The instant he opened the door to his apartment, he was staring into Erza's dark brown eyes.

"How did it go?"

He shrugged at the question, taking his sandals off by the door before slipping past her into his little living room. "About as well as we expected." He plopped into his sofa and opened his arms invitingly, an offer that she was glad to take seeing as they were the only ones at home. "It's a good thing we thought about this happening during our time with Jiraiya or things would have gone very bad, very fast."

"He has his uses." She said softly as she snuggled deep into his arms, enjoying the steady throb of his heartbeat beneath her ear. Then, she froze as she realized that she had just complimented a self-proclaimed, fully deserving, Super Pervert. "That is, of course, to say that even a disgusting piece of filth can be useful in the right circumstances."

Naruto just hummed noncommittally at her comment, knowing how much she loved to malign the Perverted Sage. That she even agreed that he _could_ be useful was a indicative of how relaxed she had become in his arms, a state of being she would often fight tooth and nail in the presence of others - _especially_ Mirajane.

"I expect that your presence will yet be required?"

"In an hour, take a few minutes." He agreed. "They're conferring on what steps they should take regarding this matter."

The Knightwalker, as a former soldier and then a general easily understood what he meant: he had brought in two people and introduced them as one thing where the reality was something else. Potential assets to the village or not, the fact remained that her new-found love had lied to the ranking authorities and that was something that couldn't easily be swept beneath the carpet. "I expect that the Hokage will do her best to shield you from excessively harsh punishments."

"I hope so but I still don't expect to get out of this with a tap on the wrist." He sighed. "I put Baa-chan in a difficult position especially if she ends up being the only one siding with me. If she tries to get the others to drop the matter then it'll imply favoritism and that could undermine her reputation but the other option will hurt her emotionally." He sighed again as he buried his face in her hair. "Damn it."

The redhead froze again as she felt his muscles tighten up: this matter seemed to truly trouble him and while she wasn't horrific at talking to others, she knew that Mira was light years better at discussing and easing the minds of those around her. As such, she wracked her mind for a few moments until she stumbled upon a little matter that ought to cheer him up.

"Levy's just about ready to cross over." She started. Knowing how much of his effort he had diverted into gaining an audience with the runes-mistress, she was certain that the current line of discussion would draw his attention.

And she was dead on: the instant she mentioned her name, Naruto had lifted the Knightwalker until she was straddling his legs and stared up at her. "Really?"

Erza was only too happy to nod. "She returned from her expedition yesterday and sent word that she'd be ready later today."

"Erza that's wonderful!" He laughed as he pulled her into a hug. "That's really fucking awesome!"

His happiness, she had discovered, was infectious and this was no different. "I was thinking we should summon her later, perhaps after Mira returns from Ichiraku's."

"Oh hell yes!"

‹‹‡››

While Naruto laughed at his good fortune, Tsunade nursed a headache, wishing -not for the first time- that she had simply stayed away from the damned Hat.

'At least those idiots took the time to explain this whole Kyubi-summons thing to me.' She groaned mentally. "So, final thoughts on this matter?"

"As I stated earlier, I'm of the opinion that this should be given A-class security clearance and tossed under the rug." Shikaku shrugged lazily as he slapped his dossier shut. "In the end, his actions haven't hurt anyone."

"On the contrary, they might very well have strengthened our reputation before our allies." Tora nodded in agreement. "After all, the witnesses from Sunagakure, both high-ranking and well respected in their Village, saw him summon two women who defeated two infamous S-ranked missing nin. Given time, I fully expect this to develop into a rumor that will cast doubts on the minds of those who seek to threaten us."

"Perhaps. However, it is conceivable that neither Hoshigaki nor the Uchiha were at full strength." Danzō rebutted. "That could dampen the effectiveness of this rumor."

"By whose account?" Tora rejoined. "After all, it is highly unlikely that the Akatsuki, going by what we have heard of them, would send worthless pawns out to secure a key goal of theirs."

Shikaku clearly agreed with that line of thought. "Even _if_ they weren't at full strength, it is very likely that whatever technique they utilized only dampened their overall stats by a single rank."

"In that case, these _Etherious_ , as Naruto called them, were able to handily defeat A-rank threats." Tsunade summarized.

"And that's not factoring Jiraiya's assessment in ours." Shikaku added to which Danzō frowned.

"We cannot take the boy's claims into account until we speak with Jiraiya himself."

"Which is why we didn't." Shikaku stated. He understood what the Elder meant: they couldn't afford to make decisions based on hearsay until they spoke to the Toad Sage himself.

"As much as I agree with Shikaku-san, however, I believe a measure of discipline must be enforced upon Uzumaki-san." Tora continued, prompting Tsunade to restrain a groan.

Things just couldn't be easy could they?

"He withheld vital information from his superiors." Danzō agreed. "Perhaps not critical information but all shinobi are expected to notify their ranking commander, jōnin or ANBU, of the acquisition of new summons."

It was an old law of the Village, dating back to the early days of the Shodai Hokage, that ensured that those shinobi with active contracts were known. It didn't matter whether they chose to go as far as notifying their commander of the specific contract they held, the important part was that their commander knew.

Certain missions had come up that required shinobi with summoning contracts and it helped the respective commanders to know who to draft to such.

Naruto had broken that law.

"The punishment for such is a withholding of the pay for whatever mission they revealed their summons on." The other three nodded at Tora's words and so the man continued. "I say we stick to that. There is no need to go further."

"I concur. However, we must decide what to do about these summons of his." Danzō added. "They pose a degree of danger to our internal security that must be addressed."

Once again, the other three nodded and they delved into the new issue.

‹‹‡››

"You really do enjoy giving me headaches don't you?"

Naruto smiled at the woman he had come to see as a mother. "I try."

Tsunade snorted. "Yeah. I shudder to think of what you would be like if you were to succeed."

The two chuckled at that, utterly relaxed in each others presence in the Hokage's Office.

"I really am sorry for putting you on the spot like that." Naruto sighed as the laughter wound down. "I just... I didn't have a choice with everything happening so fast."

"Don't worry about it." Tsunade waved casually. "Combat situations often throw curveballs and your ability to respond to them is what separates typical shinobi from the exceptional ones."

"So, no pay from the Kazekage rescue, fifty percent pay docked from my next three B-rank and up missions and ninety D-ranks to be completed at a rate of two missions per day." Naruto shook his head in amusement. "Geez, you really wanted it to sink in huh?"

Tsunade just arched an eyebrow at him. "Would you have preferred some of the options Tora offered? Because believe me, even Danzō shuddered at those."

Naruto flinched at that. Having experienced Danzō's form of training, the idea that a form of punishment had the War Hawk shuddering was downright terrifying.

"Yeah, glad you dodged that bullet aren't you?" Tsunade smirked. "So, what now?"

That question presented a conundrum to Naruto. On one hand, while Tsunade and Jiraiya knew about his summons and of Kyubi's true nature, he hadn't shared his intention of releasing her with either of them. On the other hand, he wasn't sure his conscience would let him lie to Tsunade, not after she had once more stuck her neck out for him.

"I'm working on a few things at the moment." He finally said, masking his anxiety with a smile.

Most others would not have noticed the slight moment of hesitation before he spoke and they would have been fooled by his smile.

Tsunade was not of their sort: she could tell by his hesitation and his smile that he was hiding something.

She could have -should have confronted him over it.

Instead, she laid a hand on his shoulder, stared straight into his eyes and smiled. "Just don't do anything stupid brat. I'd hate to have to cave your skull in."

It was an odd thing to say but Naruto understood the underlying meaning and, to him, that was the important thing.

‹‹‡››

Hours later, in the dead of the night and beneath a dual layered sealing barrier to keep prying eyes out, Naruto prepared to perform a summoning.

"You ready?" Mira asked as he built up his chakra.

"Ready as I'll ever be." With that, he flashed through the required handseals and slammed his palm onto the ground. "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

The requisite explosion of smoke occured.

And then things nosedived when an insane pressure threatened to crush them into the ground.

Were it not for the sealing barrier Naruto had erected around the house, the entirety of Konoha's hinobi forces would have descended on that spot because the pressure being exerted was _slightly less_ than that of Kyubi's during her rampage through Konoha all those years ago.

"So this is where you two have been slinking away to." An absolutely frosty voice rang out of the now sub-zero mist that enshrouded whoever Naruto had summoned. "Did you think I wouldn't notice?"

Prostrate on the ground and choking beneath the insane pressure, Erza and Mira still had the presence of mind to shudder.

The _Regina Glacies_ had found them.

‹‹‡››

 _The third guardian arrives._

 _Guess who?_

 _Hint: Regina Glacies is Latin for Ice Queen_

 _Happy new year people._

 _Read &Review Please._

 _The Separation_


	34. Fissures: Chapter 33

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 33**

Aura.

The ability to utilize one's body language and sheer chakra reserves to impose one's intent upon another as a method of psychological warfare, Jiraiya had called it.

Naruto had faced a number of Auras in his life: Orochimaru's disgustingly terrifying aura that simply paralyzed one with fear; Itachi's simplistic yet utterly effective apathetic aura that made one want to simply curl up and die on one side while Kisame's overwhelming aura threatened to simply drown him on the other.

None of them, not even Erza's unleashed might or Jiraiya's Sage aura could compete with what he was faced with now: an aura that left his very core feeling cold and desolate as it crushed his breath right out of him.

Only Kyubi had a more powerful aura.

And it was for that very reason that he was able to shrug off the intensity of this overwhelming aura and struggle to his feet.

Well, that and his sheer, stubborn determination.

"I suggest that… whoever the hell you are…" The words came out short and tight, his heart pounding a frenzied staccato against his ribs as he tapped into Kyubi's reserves. " **Get. Out!"**

It was a showing that, in any other situation, would have granted him respect in the eyes of the new arrival.

In this case, it just turned her against him all the more.

"You _dare_ use **my** Hime's power against me?!" Her silvery gray eyes -her most visible feature through the chilling mists- flashed icy blue as she raised a hand with a finger pointed at him. " _ **Die!**_ "

The world flashed white and, in the next second, Naruto was racing through a most exotic looking throne room, ducking, dodging and weaving his way past the barrage of human-sized icicles that hounded his every step.

It was probably a difficult task for some; learning the lay of the new environment as they cheated death multiple times per second but the blond shinobi was only too used to such and was already analyzing his steps to see if he could find a pattern to take advantage of and turn the battle in his favor.

The break he needed came not much later when he sent an icicle flying back at its caster thanks to an excellently timed spin-kick.

The sight of her own attack racing toward her drew just the barest flicker of attention away from him as she forced the projectile to disappear but Naruto capitalized on that instant, summoning a trio of clones that quickly scattered into various corners of the room before launching their counter-offensive.

"Doton: Chikyū no Sokubaku!"

"Fūton: Renkudan!"

"Katon: Endan!"

The effects were immediate: the Shackles of the Earth technique liquefied the ground beneath the woman's feet and sucked her in until it hardened around her knees, leaving her wide open to the fire-wind combination technique.

" **Clypeus**!"

The room shook violently and a wave of heat upended just about everything in sight as the synergistic Flame Bomb detonated.

"Suiton: Suidanha!" The quartet of blonds weren't certain whether or not the technique had connected but they weren't taking any chances and a pair of powerful water jets punched into the heart of the conflagration. At the same time, Naruto unsealed a _daishō_ set from the back of his glove, the expertly crafted blades gleaming as he channeled wind into the _shōto_ and lightning into its larger counterpart.

" **Fool!** "

Faster than they could blink, the jets of water crystallized and the newly formed ice poles lanced through the offenders before shattering into even more jagged weapons that hounded the remaining two.

" **Tesca Arctica**!" The ground froze over so suddenly that Naruto was barely able to leap onto the wall to remain safe. His clone was not so lucky, however and a cry of " **Sepulchrum**!" marked its swift demise, crushed in a literal icy grave.

Fury suffused Naruto's features as he drew upon even more of Kyubi's energy, funneling the extra energy into his blades before blasting toward the icy mist that even now enshrouded his enemy.

For the first time since the battle had begun, the mists vanished, revealing that his opponent had the same thought as he did.

" **Ensiculus** **!** " A long, thin ice blade* appeared in her left hand mere seconds before they clashed.

Naruto instantly regretted getting up close.

This woman, for all her almost angelic beauty, was an absolute _devil_ at close quarters.

In the thirty seconds or so that they had exchanged blows, she had attacked him nearly a thousand times where he had barely managed to retaliate a _tenth_ of the time. At the same time, less than a tenth of his attacks had landed where she only missed _two times out of every hundred._

Enhancing his swords with elemental chakra did nothing to slow her down: she parried the lightning enhanced _daitō_ like it was a mere glow stick and she blocked the variable length of the wind-enhanced _shotō_ as though the invisible length of wind he added was a brightly shining star in her vision.

That he was still alive was in no small part thanks to the insane training Erza had put him through and Kyubi's chakra that surged through him as he fought yet, in a dark parallel of his actions earlier on, a single misstep was all the opening one needed.

That opening came the instant they set foot on the ground again.

So focused was he on keeping his head attached to his neck that he never noticed the slight bump on the icy floor where her Tundra technique had glazed over an overturned lamppost. His heel caught the top of the bump and he lost his balance, leaving him glaringly open for her to run her blade through his heart.

 **Clang!**

The resounding tingle of metal striking metal rang through his ears as he stabilized himself and he looked up to see Erza in her _Kureha no Yoroi_ straining to hold the thin blade away from piercing her neck.

He was about to dive back into the fray when a sudden weight held him back and it was only the scent of her familiar perfume that kept him from stabbing Mira through her belly.

"Stay here!" Her tone was urgent, pleading and her appearance had shifted into what he recognized as her _Halphas_ form. "Just trust us and stay here, Naruto-sama!"

"Naruto?" Her questioning tone belied the cold fury that was obvious in her eyes as she kept the pressure on Erza. "Is that the name of this dog you seem so attached to?"

"There is more… to this situation… than lies on the surface… Grayfia… sama!" Erza's every grunt lit a fire in Naruto's gut: he wanted to get back in there and fight, to show this Grayfia bitch why **no one** crossed his precious people.

Yet Mira's words held him back.

The very same Mira who was, right now, appealing to the silver-haired woman. "Grayfia-sama, please listen to us. We have never once done anything to undermine our Queen and we will not start now. Please believe that we are, even now, operating according to her commands."

Grayfia narrowed her eyes as she studied the two young women before her; two women that she knew and, most of all, _that she trusted._

She backed away slowly, keeping up her intense glare at all three of them while maintaining a guarded stance.

Mira half-turned to Naruto. "Show her the seal, Naruto-sama." When she noted the slight hesitance of the one she had come to see as her chosen and the barely noticeable tightening of Grayfia's hand around the hilt of her rapier, her voice cracked. _"Please."_

Naruto sighed and -after sealing away the daitō- he slowly lifted his shirt up.

A sudden gasp right in front of him had him preparing his singular blade for combat as Grayfia, Erza and Mira tensed.

Then, a blue haired girl materialized right before his eyes with a stunned expression on her beautiful face. "You're the one Erza-sama told me about!" She spun to face Grayfia. "Kyubi-sama is in him!"

Grayfia blinked twice, cocked her head to the side and uttered a single word.

"What?"

‹‹‡››

"I truly do apologize for my actions earlier, Uzumaki-san." Grayfia bowed humbly to the bare-chested blond who lay prostrate on a table as the blue haired girl -Levy McGarden, she had introduced herself as- peered, poked and prodded at his seal. "I was needlessly brash in my choice of how to deal with my fellow, wayward Guardians and that affected my dealings with you."

"It's no problem, really." Naruto smiled to show that there were no hard feelings. "Where are we anyway? There was a flash just before we… threw down."

Grayfia smiled wryly at his attempt to crack a joke. "That was Mira's work, likely to spare you the destruction of your home. Right now, we're in Makai."

"To be specific, you were transported into Lady Mirajane's throne room -which you wrecked by the way-"

Grayfia arched an eyebrow at the blue haired runes mistress. "Levy, the entire reason Uzumaki-san 'wrecked' Mira's throne room was that _I_ attacked him first. Or have you forgotten?"

While Levy blushed furiously at her faux pas, Naruto shifted till he caught Grayfia's eye. "I was hoping to ask you about that…"

"Please, go on."

"Why were you so upset at them? I mean, now that we've calmed down and all, I can definitely tell that you trust Erza and Mira to a great degree."

Grayfia's cheeks colored slightly but she showed no other expression when she answered: "You are correct that I trust both Erza and Mira; in fact, save one other, those two, along with the final Guardian, are the ones I trust the most.

"However, they have been absent from their duties here for months now and the few times I have caught up with them, they offered truly appalling excuses that seemed more insulting than anything else. Upon finding out that Erza had requested Levy's presence via a summoning -and the knowledge that the Kitsune clan even _had_ a summoner was shocking in and of itself- I simply took the opportunity to show up and teach them why poorly constructed lies are never condoned."

Naruto thought over it and, after choosing to see it as a big prank, agreed that it _was_ a good reason to show up and terrify the pants off his lovers. "That doesn't explain why you tried to kill me, though."

The _Regina Glacies_ winced. "That… that was an act of uncontrolled emotion." She admitted slowly. "You see, when I felt you radiate Hime's energy, I thought the worst: that you had somehow taken her power for your own and… and I feared that you had killed her."

Her words had a chilling effect on him yet explained her actions perfectly. "She must have been a great queen to inspire such emotions in her closest allies."

A tender smile blossomed on Grayfia's face and -for the first time since he had seen her- she looked truly stunning. "Of that we are in agreement. However, she isn't _just_ my Queen. She is my _Hime-sama_."

A confused frown knotted Naruto's forehead. "Hime-sama? But…"

"You are not wrong to be confused. After all, she _is_ a Queen." Her smile gained a hint of nostalgia as she stared at a vision he couldn't see. Were it not for his stunted growth as an orphan, he would have recognized her smile as that of a proud mother's. Memories of a more peaceful time flashed through her mind, memories of a tubby little redheaded princess whose smile brightened up any room, chasing darkness out of people's hearts."I have been at her side much longer than any of the other Guardians, Uzumaki-san, serving the very same purpose. I took care of her from the moment she was born until she reached her majority and, when she kept me close, I did all I could to keep her safe." The silver-haired woman stood with a regal air that perfectly earned her title. "Before becoming the _Regina Glacies,_ I served a different purpose; a simpler, purer, perhaps even a _nobler_ one if you will."

" _Yukiba! I'm hungry!"_

" _Yukiba! Take me to the fair!"_

" _Yukiba! Let's play a prank on Tou-san!"_

Some of the best days of her life were back then.

"I was her Caretaker."

‹‹‡››

 **FLASHBACK**

 _ **Day of Naruto's Return…**_

There wasn't a word to describe Shizune's mental state as she stared at the innocuous looking report lying on her table.

Six sheets of plain white paper rested within the equally plain brown file jacket, a simple black stamp at the top right corner spelled out the nature of its contents.

 _Important._

The dark haired jōnin disagreed with that simple label. _War-Starter_ would have been a better choice, as would _Critically Shattering_ or even _World Ending._

Even now, having studied the contents more than a dozen times, she simply couldn't figure out what to feel.

 _-Senju clan were often drafted to the areas of the most intense fighting while even certain S-class Uchiha were passed off to handle grossly over-ranked missions that mere genin could have completed.-_

 _-statistical evidence proves that the Uchiha -and, to a lesser extent, the Yamanaka- clan experienced upswings in their population during the First and Second Shinobi wars. In contrast, both the Hyūga and the Senju experienced heavy losses within the same period.-_

 _-found missives that imply that the destruction of Uzushiogakure, if not entirely engineered by sources_ _ **within**_ _the Village, the situation was exacerbated by in-house sources.-_

 _-still searching for evidence but we suspect that Tsunade-sama's crippling losses were engineered to prevent a rebirth of the Senju.-_

A lot of the details within the file were simply statistical records that, on their own, wouldn't have raised any eyebrows. However, when taken together and coupled with a cautious eye, the picture they painted…

She didn't know what to do.

She, of course, _knew_ that she ought to table this before the Hokage and leave the decision to the leader of the Village yet she wasn't sure that was the right step.

For all the fact that she had been an exceptional leader, Shizune knew that, deep down inside, the woman she had come to see as a big sister still harbored a great deal of resentment toward the Village Hidden in the Leaves and bore the scars of the deaths of her loved ones. A revelation like this could very well break her and the results could be devastating. As for the Village itself, the revelation that one of the Founding Clans had orchestrated the annihilation of the other with aid from a major Clan would set inter-clan relations back to the Warring Clans Era and the resulting civil war would wipe Konoha off the map more surely than if all other shinobi villages allied themselves and waged war against them.

To say that the situation was _delicate_ was a gross understatement…

 **FLASHBACK ENDS**

‹‹‡››

"I didn't expect to see you here, Erza."

Erza snapped out of her daze as she spun around before hastily bowing when she noted who had just walked in. "Grayfia-san"

"Relax." Grayfia smiled as she joined the Knightwalker at the window that allowed them to see into observe Levy as she bustled around a still-prone Naruto, a lightly glowing holographic projection of the seal hovering overhead. "We are equals in service are we not?"

The former Caretaker's words were the truth: while she may have held seniority over the other three Guardians thanks to her prolonged time in the service of their Queen, the woman had never taken her counterparts as less than equals. She occasionally got upset at their conduct (with herself and Mira often the culprits, Erza thought with a smile) and tried correcting them (as had happened earlier) but it was more as a big sister than a bossy superior.

They stood in companionable silence, watching the blue haired runes mistress meticulously taking note after endless note.

"Whoever designed this containment must have god-like intellect." The silver haired woman commented. "I cannot remember the last time Levy worked so hard to merely decode the extent of a seal."

The comment brought a slight smile to Erza's face. "Naruto-sama's parents created it. According to his godfather, they worked on it for close to a year before deeming it ready."

Grayfia's lips thinned in disapproval. "Typical humans."

"Perhaps, Grayfia-san, but not in Naruto-sama's case." The conviction in the Knightwalker's tone drew the full attention of the _Regina Glacies_. "Things have changed since we were cut off from the human world: from what Kyubi-sama told me, every last member of the High Court has been sealed away much like she was."

"And?"

"The landscape has changed. Rather than singular clans ruling and warring with each other, they have grown to form Villages; political entities where allied clans push together to achieve a common goal."

Grayfia scoffed in disgust. "It certainly took them long enough. How many lives did they lose before realizing the benefits of such alliances, I wonder?"

"Regardless; the most powerful of these Villages each hold at least one member of the Court imprisoned within people such as Naruto-sama." Erza explained. "They have been led to believe that the members of the Court are nothing less than mindless beasts and they act accordingly."

"You're not doing them any favors, Erza."

"Very few of them have done anything to make me see them as more than apes." The Knightwalker shrugged. "I was simply explaining the current state of things to you."

"Perhaps…" Grayfia agreed before staring questioningly at her. "Yet you would have me believe that this young man has done enough to elevate himself beyond being an ape?"

The red haired Guardian sighed as she rested a palm on the glass, her eyes locked on the form of her love. "His life has been hell, Grayfia-san; on the day of his birth, a great catastrophe befell his home, costing him parents and his standing within his home. By the time he was an adolescent, he had experienced a level of rejection and hatred very few ever would and all because of an event he was unfortunate to be associated with. That he hasn't sworn himself to a life of vengeance and sold his soul to the darkness is simply because he cares too much about the few people he has in his life to do so." Grayfia arched an eyebrow at the Knightwalker's words, wondering if the poor girl wasn't simply drunk on love only to be left gaping as the redhead continued. "I don't know if she realizes it but I believe Kyubi-sama is in love with him. She claims that she has been pushing for him to break ties with his Village so she can exact her vengeance on them but 'm beginning to think that it isn't only _her_ goals that she seeks in destroying the Village."

"You think she wants to give him closure of some sort?"

"It isn't impossible." Erza hedged. "I may be wrong, of course, but I don't think I am."

Grayfia leaned back and closed her eyes in deep thought. "And this Village; do they deserve what's coming to them? Besides their imprisonment of our Queen."

Erza's brown eyes darkened in hatred as she recalled some of the worst details Yuki had uncovered about the Merchants Guild and the Civilian Council's actions within the Village.

Greed. Overambitious desires that spurred them to create a stranglehold over the Village's economy. Corruption from the highest echelons to the lowest slums.

"They deserve worse." 

‹‹‡››

"Well, your friend's certainly thorough, I'll give her that." Naruto groaned as he sat up, feeling his stiff muscles voice their disagreement. "That was the longest check-up I've ever had to sit through and I've had Baa-chan give me the full works."

"Levy takes anything to do with runes _very_ seriously." Mira smiled as she moved to help him up. "And that little tattoo on your belly has got to be one of the -if not _the-_ most complex matrices she has ever had to deal with."

"I could tell; she seemed equal parts frustrated and impressed." He gently ran his hands up and down her side as they moved to her room. "I'm just glad it's over."

"Aw, so you didn't like her rubbing your pecs and _studying_ you?" She teased, prompting a laugh from the blond who pulled her even closer and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"You know I've only got eyes for you." He whispered huskily before pausing and sporting a mild blush. "And Erza. And Tenten. Plus Yuki. And now Ino, I suppose."

Mira just snorted at him. "Nice going Casanova."

"Whatever." They walked along in silence for a while before he spoke up again. "I hope I'm not intruding or anything but… Levy and Grayfia… they're not like you and Erza, are they?"

"Hmm? How do you mean?"

"I mean… I got a pretty good feel of Grayfia's energy signature while we fought and, with how often she injected little amounts of her energy into me to map out the seal, I'd say I got a decent feel of Levy as well." He paused, then: "They're not like you or Erza; they feel like different beings."

Mira smiled at him. "You're pretty spot on there, lover boy." She paused to greet a pair of maids as they walked by. "Levy comes from Magnolia, a beautiful forest to the east and the home of the fairies."

"Woah… She's an _actual_ _fairy_?"

"Yep."

"But… she doesn't have wings… or is she just hiding them?"

"No… she really doesn't." Mira's tone grew sad as she recalled the cripplingly shy blue-nette Levy had once been. "She doesn't like talking about it but… she was born without wings." Naruto's eyes instantly gained a look of sympathy for the young girl. After all, he knew what it was like to have been born different. "The older Fairies didn't see anything wrong with her not having wings and they did their best to support Levy but… let's just say that kids can sometimes be worse than adults. She became an introvert, started to hate herself for being different."

It was a jarring thought, trying to reconcile the intelligent, easygoing runes mistress to the image Mira had created. "What happened?"

"Kyubi-sama happened." Mira smiled softly. "She was on a diplomatic tour three years after gaining her majority and a year to her ascension to the throne. When she got to Magnolia, she saw Levy, standing apart from all the other kids, working on a what most thought were just basic runes. Imagine our shock when we saw what she was really doing: she was creating a runic script that would give her wings."

Naruto's mind recoiled at that thought: fuinjutsu, the human form of runes, was incredibly complex; heck, to make a single-trigger exploding tag required a series of calculations to ensure that the whole thing didn't devolve into a cascading mess of nuclear proportions *****.

A seal that would enable _true_ flight (and not controlled falling or some other flawed attempt) would be an incredibly complex project.

"Well, she was quite a ways off but Kyubi-sama decided right then and there that little Levy McGarden would be groomed to be her runes mistress." Mira glanced at him. "And that, as they say, was that."

"Now I know why I felt so at ease around her." Naruto smiled at the tale of the blue-nette. "And Grayfia?"

"Ah… well, I won't really go into her story; that's her tale to tell, after all…"

"Sure you're not just scared of her?" He teased only to gasp in pain when she jabbed her elbow into his ribs. "I'm sorry!" He wheezed tightly.

"No. I _was_ thinking about telling you about her before but since _I'm_ so scared of her, maybe you should do it." She sniffed. "It's not like you've got great hulking balls of brass or anything."

"Aw come on Mira…" He tried his best to catch her eye but she resolutely looked away. "Please?"

She just ignored him as she reached out to open the door to the room. "You're on your own here lover boy."

"Hmph. Fine. I'll do it myself." He huffed as they walked in and he took a moment to glance around the tastefully furnished room, noting the high-end decor. "Well damn; I didn't know I warranted Gold room."

The Succubus glanced at him before scoffing dismissively. "Of course you don't." Then, she leaned up to give him a soft kiss on his cheek. "You deserve _my_ room, lover boy."

The blond's eyes grew wide in astonishment as he took in the contents of the room a second time, wondering how he had missed it: from the purple, blue and white color scheme to the tastefully lavish furniture… even the little knickknacks strewn around the jasmine-scented room…

It all pointed to the white-haired beauty that was still nestled in the crook of his arm.

"I'm an idiot." He buried his face into her hair and groaned as she dragged him onto the bed. "I am _such_ an idiot."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up about it." Mira giggled as she moved to straddle him. "After all, not too many even know about this room."

He frowned in confusion. "But… isn't this yours?"

She nodded, amused by his befuddled look. "It is. However, as the queen of a race of sexually dependent women, I've had a few 'envoys' try to bed me. The 'Queen's Chambers' are for dealing with such. _This_ room, on the other hand, is my personal bedroom; my safe room, so to speak." She smiled nostalgically as her eyes rested on a few, more memorable knickknacks. "It's been mine since I was a little girl."

"Ah… Much clearer thank you." He moved his hands to her sides and gently ran them up and down. "So, between the four Guardians you run Makai in Kyubi's place?"

"Sort of." She shrugged. "I mean, it's not just the four of us; each member of the High Court has their own council whose political might, within their own lands, equals ours. We don't fuck with them, they don't fuck with us and we all do our damned best to ensure that we're working for the benefit of Makai."

"You guys seem to have figured the path to peace out pretty quickly." He said, prompting her to scoff.

"Hardly. We've just got a neutral party whose scary enough to keep us in line." Mira shuddered at the thought of a certain lavender-haired she-demon. "She's a good motivational force."

"Do I even want to know about this person?"

"Not if I can help it." She growled as she leaned over and pecked him on the nose. "I prefer you when you aren't a drooling, fear-addled mess."

"Alright…"

They stayed like that for an indeterminable period, simply enjoying the others presence until Mira pushed herself up again. "I have a question."

"Fire away."

"Why…" She trailed off and looked away, as if trying to summon up her courage. "Why haven't you asked for Kyubi-sama's name? I mean, it's quite obvious that Erza, Yuki and I are going out of our way to not say anything about it and, with Grayfia and Levy doing the same today, I'd have thought you'd go crazy about wanting to know."

She watched as his collapsed, letting out all the air in them, before slowly inflating again.

"You're not wrong, you know." He said, staring into her eyes. "About my going crazy not knowing her name; you're not wrong about that. It's weird having to refer to her as 'Kyubi' all the time; makes me feel like one of the more moronic villagers.

" The thing is, as much as I want to know about her… I want to hear it _from her._ " He sucked in air through his teeth before continuing. "I don't know if it makes any sense to you but I want to see her; I want to watch her sit in a chair as we talk; I want to hear her story from her mouth in this _physical world_ and not inside my head.

"Does that make any sense to you?"

It did. And it struck her just how profound his feelings for her Queen were.

He was denying himself of something he truly wanted, using it as a reward for him to accomplish a goal.

Mira didn't even know when it happened but the next thing she knew was that she had locked lips with him in a fervent, emotional kiss that had them panting when she finally broke it off. "Don't ever change."

"I don't plan on."

The moment was ruined when a magic circle simply popped into existence in front of her.

"Damn it." She stared at the magic clock that had been synchronized with Naruto's bedside clock. "We've got four hours till your alarm goes off."

"So?"

" _So,_ nice as it was to make an unscheduled visit here and all, its time to get going."

"Don't wanna."

The Succubus arched an eyebrow at the pouting shinobi beneath her. "You want to add a court martial to that slew of D-ranks you've got on your plate lover boy?"

"Aw come on! I'm pretty sure Yuki will tell Erza if we're needed back in the Village and you can just tell me when the alarm goes off." He turned the charm _way_ past eleven. "I really want to spend the night with you."

Mira did her very best to hold out against the powerful 'Aura of Cute' he was beaming at her but, in the end, she caved. "Ugh, fine!" She dropped back onto his chest. "You are such a baby!"

"Can I nurse on mama?"

"Shut up. Sleep."

‹‹‡››

 _ **Unknown Location**_

The once vibrant, verdant field was nothing more than a wasteland now; transformed by the volatile cocktail of skilled combatants, chakra usage and no restraints.

Smoke curled off blackened bodies, limbs jerked about spasmodically as run-off electrical currents danced through them and the air was filled with the death rattles of maimed, bleeding out monsters and men.

"You really _did_ learn something these past few year didn't you, you limp-dicked fucker."

Onyx tomoe swirled hypnotically in a sea of crimson as the bearer of the infamous Copy Wheel Eyes stared apathetically at his 'overseer'. "You don't look too good. Kabuto's been experimenting on you again?"

"Would you care if he was?"

"Not particularly, no."

The young lady glared at him. "You're just a bag of fucking laughs aren't you?"

"With how much you antagonize me, the alternative is to kill you." Sasuke stared at her for half a second before sheathing his sword. "Unfortunately, killing you will hamper Orochimaru's plans and, for all his resources, people of your caliber are a rare resource in Oto."

"You are correct, Sasuke-kun." The young woman's body locked up at the sound of that sibilant voice that seemed to echo all around them. "It certainly doesn't help matters now that you've just wiped out a large number of my jōnin."

" _You_ ordered them to fight me. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were cleaning house. Besides, they were weak." Was the blunt reply he got, prompting Orochimaru to laugh as he sidled out of the ground to stand by the Uchiha.

"It's good to see that you are ready to take on your mission, Sasuke-kun."

"Hmph. There is no way to know my true state of readiness until I face real threats."

"Then you'll be glad I came around." The Snake Sannin chuckled. "You see, your old teammate returned to Konoha a few months ago."

Sasuke fixed Orochimaru with an utterly dispassionate stare. "So?"

"Well, a little bird told me that your old friend has been quite busy." The Snake drawled lazily. "A number of high-end assassinations, top of the line escort missions; he even stopped a coup in Fumoto-Cho."

"So he gets around a lot." Sasuke rolled his eyes as he turned to leave. "He always had more energy than he knew what to do with."

"Yeah well your old fucker teammate took on the bloody Akatsuki and saved the fucking Kazekage." The young lady stated, relishing the way the Uchiha froze. By the time he turned around to glare at her, she was sporting a wide, cocky smirk. "I don't see _you_ taking on the bogeymen of the shinobi world."

"The loser would have had help."

"While he _did_ have help, Sasuke-kun, I can tell you that the members whom his team fought were not push-overs." Orochimaru continued, knowing that the raven haired boy was now adequately riled up. "My sources say that he almost single-handedly took out Deidara, while he was involved in the fights against the two other members that were present: Hoshigaki Kisame and…"

"Itachi…" The drawn-out way he pronounced the hated name was the only sign of the rage that boiled within him as he swiftly formulated a plan. "Tell Kabuto to activate one of his spies in Konoha: it's time Team Seven had a reunion."

"Hey fuckhead! You don't really think that's a wise decision do you? If that fucking tree-hugging bastard of a teammate took out a member of the bloody Akatsuki then don't you think there's a chance that he might be stronger than your limp-dicked-"

" _Never suggest that again."_

The young lady had to force herself not to swallow lest she graze her skin against the furiously humming blade that was held against her throat, her eyes pinned by the violently spinning tomoe in his crimson eyes.

Then, he disappeared, along with the blade at her neck and she was finally able to breathe again.

"Very well done, 359." Orochimaru clapped mockingly. "As I expected, your foulmouthed nature was the exact push Sasuke-kun needed." He ignored her almost frenzied gasps as he walked away. "Prepare yourself: should Konoha take up his offer, you will shadow him and ensure that my… _investment_ returns to me."

Though it tasted like bile in her mouth, she knew what he expected of her and she forced herself to bow to the retreating Sannin. "Understood, Orochimaru-sama."

"Return to the base, 359. Kabuto has a few add-ons to equip you with in preparation for the coming mission."

She shuddered at the _idea_ that the glasses-wearing fuck-face would have to 'work' on her again but she knew what her options were having failed such a crucial mission.

A life of slavery where she was still human versus a life of slavery as little more than one of the grotesque monsters the Uchiha had cleaved through during this 'training' exercise.

She'd take the option that retained her sanity, however little of it she could truly lay claim to.

"Hurry up 359. Your advancements await."

She gritted her teeth as she once more paid obeisance to him.

She was **not** a mere number; a log in their daily fucking logs.

' _My name is Tayuya you reptilian bastard!'_

‹‹‡››

 ***- I've seen people suggest that making exploding tags is 'easy' but I feel making the equivalent of a paper grenade should not be, in anyway, seen as 'easy'.**

 **I seriously considered using Esdeath as the third guardian but I'd have had to severely alter her character to fit my story so I decided to stick with Grayfia [whose attacks will be written in Latin just because]. As a concession, I've given Grayfia Esdeath's expert swordplay skill** **[and the Rapier]** **as well as the absolute control over ice (I looked up her powers and saw nothing on either swordplay or ice magic so… {I'm not a DxD fanatic tho…}).**

 **So, we have the Third Guardian, Grayfia Lucifuge: the Regina Glacies and Kyubi's former Caretaker (babysitter if you didn't catch on). She will NOT be shacking it up with Naruto, though. Much like I intend to leave Tsunade as Naruto's mother figure, Grayfia will be the same for Kyubi. [PS: Having young Kyubi call Grayfia Yukiba (condensed form of Yuki-baa meaning: snow hag) was hilarious and a play on how Naruto refers to Tsunade.]**

 **Levy as a Fairy. Pretty on the nose, that. On the plus side, she gets Freed's wings script and retains her solid script (the hologram of the seal was her solid script literally mapping the thing out, there was just nowhere to put that without going on a hugely expositional tangent).**

 **Meanwhile, more light has been shed on the Senju extermination plot and Shizune has to decide whether or not to take this to Tsunade and Sasuke is actively making the decision to seek out his old rival.**

 **Also: Tayuya.**

 **Well, that's all for now.**

 **Read and Review Please.**

 **[Seriously people: Reviews really do help me figure out what to do and how you see this fic. Please review.]**

 **Translations:**

 **Clypeum: Shield**

 **Tesca Arctica: Tundra**

 **Sepulchrum: Grave**

 **Ensiculus: Rapier**

 **Chikyu no Sokubaku: Shackles of the Earth**

 **Renkudan: Drilling Air Bullet**

 **Endan: Flame Bullet**

 **Suidanha: Water Severing Wave**


	35. Fissures: Chapter 34

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 34**

 _ **Decades Ago…**_

"Didn't I tell you not to worry, Inojin?" Shido smirked as he lounged on the sofa, tossing back a gulp of the sake his host had provided. "There is nothing to fear, my friend."

Inojin, the tall, well-built blond jōnin commander just scoffed at his partner. "This coming from the man who hounded me at every stage of the plan? Who _repeatedly_ forced me into late night meetings just to verify that our actions hadn't been found out?"

" _I_ did all that to ensure that we wouldn't be caught by the fools who think they understand anything." Shido replied in a faux-snooty tone. " _You_ were just being a lazy bitch."

Staggering to his feet, the slightly tipsy Yamanaka sketched a mocking bow. "Well what now, oh great Uchiha-sama?"

"Well, thanks to a few, well placed members of my clan who share our mutual… disappointment with the way things are run in this village, a rumor has been building up." The Uchiha smiled darkly as he recalled the news his agents had delivered to him two nights prior. "It seems _someone_ let slip the tiny detail of Konoha's alliance with Uzushio and all the _benefits_ those swirly bastards provide the village in terms of our defenses. Now, with the Nidaime dead thanks to our little tip to Kumo,* relations are at an all time low making it the perfect time for the Raikage to build up an alliance that will crush the natives of Uzushio." He paused to take another sip of his drink. "We intercept communications, forcing Uzushio to go extinct and then we gather our forces and rip through the remnants of those that murdered our 'allies'."

"Simplicity; now there's something you don't usually see in a plan construed by Uchiha Shido." Inojin barked out a sharp burst of laughter. "So, we ruin the Senju powerbase even further and, during the upcoming war we repeat our tactics?"

"Essentially." Shido conceded. "However, we need to find our replacements."

Inojin nodded. "We're getting too old for this: we need people that can carry the torch." He sat back and mulled the problem over in his mind. "Any options?"

"A few." Shido answered a tad slowly. "I'm trying to figure out how we can verify their loyalty to our cause but I do have high hopes for them…"

 **END FLASHBACK**

‹‹‡››

"Hokage-sama, here are the reports of our findings from analyzing the remains of Akasuna no Sasori's remains."

Tsunade acknowledged the man's words with a nod and gestured with her pen to her inbox tray while still perusing the draft she had sketched out to deal with a pending problem the Housing Committee had -yet again- tabled before her. As such, she was mildly surprised when she -having deemed her work fit to be tendered at the next Council Meeting- dropped the draft only to see the man standing before her, the report still clutched in his hands. "Something wrong, Shio*?"

The dark haired, nondescript looking man bowed deeply. "I apologize for my insubordination, Hokage-sama, but there are things that I wish to discuss with you regarding our findings."

"Let's hear it then." Tsunade stated her calm tone not giving away a hint of her unease. Sarugaki Minaka -codenamed 'Shio'- had served as the head of the Data Analysis branch of the Cryptography department for well over a decade. In that time, he had been christened the 'Ghost' by the minority that knew of him in the Village: the man _hated_ leaving his department, believing that every second spent walking about was time wasted not analyzing a string of text or the other. The Hokage was the **only** person he reported to directly and even then, it was to deliver his reports and head back to his beloved assignments.

For him to stand patiently and _wait_ was as much of an anomaly as Naruto not inhaling his first bowl of ramen after a week.

"As you are aware, Hokage-sama, the Crypt-Analysis section has spent the past three weeks conducting investigations into the recovered remains of Akasuna no Sasori's puppet body. Officially, Shoyu and Miso led the teams conducting these investigations while I supervised." The man stated as he pulled out specific pages from the report and handed them over. "Officially, this setup never changed. _Un_ officially, however, this arrangement lasted until midway through the first week at which point my chief subordinates worked on the parts that made up Sasori's puppet's _body_ while I personally handled this section." He handed a labeled diagram over and Tsunade had to withhold a gasp. "The leftovers of his cranial cortex."

"The puppet's brain."

"In crude terms, yes." Shio shrugged. "However, as far as Shoyu and Miso have determined, the technique he used to recreate his own body in the form of a puppet did _not_ translate to him having a brain as well as a heart. In fact, seeing as the Self-Puppet technique was likely a modified version of the Human-Puppet technique he used on the Third Kazekage, we believe that the only reason he retained his heart in his Self-Puppet technique was that the Human-Puppet technique could only be performed by a human and Sasori couldn't maintain his connection with his soul if he fully became a puppet."

"So he kept his heart and _created_ the cortex?"

"We believe he had it commissioned from a member of the town he destroyed."

 _That_ made more sense than thinking that the ex-Suna shinobi had created such a ridiculously complex piece of fuinjutsu: few outside Suna knew the site of the Puppeteer's rampage and the murder of whoever created his artificial brain certainly seemed like a twisted enough reason for him to destroy a whole town.

"Whatever the case, the information I recovered from the cortex demanded your attention." Shio pointed at a specific file which she swiftly perused. "Sasori has spies within the Village."

"Either we've been too lax with our counter-intelligence efforts or our enemies have gotten smarter."

"Definitely the second, Hokage-sama. The technique he used to gain informants is, for all intents and purposes, a poor-man's variant of a Yamanaka technique Tonkatsu identified as the False Life. Where the Yamanaka technique plants a deep seated connection between the caster and the victim to ensure that every action of the victim is to the benefit of the caster, Sasori's technique implants subliminal codes that, when triggered, subsume the victim's will to the desires of the caster."

"So the victims _are_ spies, they just don't know it."

"Essentially."

"But how the hell did a rogue Suna nin figure out how to fabricate a variant -poor man's or not- of a Clan technique?"

"Orochimaru."

The reply lit a cold blaze of rage in the Hokage and it took less than a second to connect the dots. "That bastard… He worked with Sasori when he was in the Akatsuki."

"They were, for a time, partners." Shio clarified. "It would explain one of the fragments of data I recieved that identified Yakushi Kabuto as one of _Sasori's_ plants."

An image of a smugly grinning bespectacled teen flashed through her mind and she suppressed the urge to ram a fist through her desk. Instead, she grabbed a slip of paper and scribbled something out furiously before slamming her seal onto the paper. "Get this to Cryptography: we're updating the bounty on Orochimaru."

A quick glance at the slip had Shio widening his normally impassive eyes. "You're tripling his bounty?"

"Tell them the added bonus is coming from my funds." She sat back with a frown. "I was told that Itachi Uchiha and Hoshigaki Kisame pretty much waltzed into the Village in the aftermath of the Invasion. I wondered how that was possible, after all, records show that the patrol rosters were changed following Itachi's crime."

"You think…"

"It's very likely and would explain why a group that had people like Sasori, Itachi and Kisame didn't just hunt his ass into extinction: bastard was selling intel on us." She nearly growled out the last statement. "What else?"

"The identities of Sasori's plants -those I could obtain from the fragmented cortex- have been listed out with my recommendation on what steps we should take."

"Thank you for bringing this to my notice. I'll file the permission slip later but right now I need you to get to the T&I section and organize a round-up of the names on that list. Do it in whatever order you think is best but ensure that we have a working report of how much of their will has been subverted by the end of the week. Have Inoichi draft in his best mindwalkers if neccessary."

"Understood."

"One more thing: Ibiki has been working on the captured Akatsuki member, Deidara-"

"You need me to collate the acquired data and cross-reference it with whatever I have discovered from the cortex to see if there are any leads we can work on." The man nodded and got up. "I'll get right on it, Hokage-sama."

‹‹‡››

Having searched through most of their usual haunts to no avail, the last thing Kurotsuchi expected was to find her target mere moments after she had given up.

'Of course, that's just normal when dealing with him.' She thought as she cut through the foliage surrounding the training ground she had spotted him in. 'I wonder what he's doing, though… I'm not used to seeing him just sit around without Screamer or Diva around.'

Drawing on every bit of stealth she possessed, the Iwa kunoichi inched closer to where the blond shinobi sat, cross-legged and deep in meditation…

"I know you're out there Size Queen."

…or so it seemed.

"Gah, fuck!" She swore as she walked out to meet him. "What, are you also a sensor now?"

Naruto just snorted as he straightened his legs and stared at her approaching figure. "Hardly. _You_ just had the shitty luck of walking into a jutsu testing ground."  
"Tch. Figures." She plopped down beside him in an undignified heap. "You learning a new technique?"

"I'm _creating_ a new technique." He corrected. "It's a work in progress I'm temporarily calling the _Naruto_ _no jutsu_."

The raven haired Iwa kunoichi couldn't repress her sarcastic snort. "Narcissist much?"

"It's a _working name_." He rolled his eyes at her. "Anyway, the idea is for me to sort of release a burst of wind-natured chakra and have it hover in a sort of dome around me. Whatever gets into the dome 'pings' my chakra and sends a clear image back to me."

Kurotsuchi whistled softly after hearing his explanation. "Damn Matchstick; you'd be pretty fucking hard to beat if you ever got that up and running." She paused, having thought of something and then amended: "Well, if you ever get it up and running over a _respectable range._ "

The blond just threw his head back and laughed. "I just knew you'd figure out the glaring problems in a pinch." He calmed down and sighed. "Yeah, I'm having issues with the distance right now: the farther range, the longer it takes me to figure shit out. At the distance you were when I called out, if you'd thrown a kunai with a decent amount of power and I was relying only on the technique… well, I'd be seeing the inside of a clinic right now."

"Yeah well, there's also the fucking _terrifying_ part of keeping the dome moving as you move, especially when you need to either use a shunshin or a substitution."

"Oh God don't remind me!" His voice sounded muffled as he had dropped his face into his hands. "Even getting it to work while _walking_ is going to be a bitch."

"And somehow, I feel good knowing that you're going to suffer." She smirked.

"Bitch."

"Why thank you." Her smirk grew slightly before dying off. "Can I ask you something?"

"No village secrets."

It was a running joke between them, Tenten and Ino inclusive, where they'd say something along the lines of 'I have a question…' and either herself or the Konoha nin would reply in the same vein. However, for the first time, she truly wondered why they hadn't ever tried to pump her for information.

"Why have you been so… civil to me? I mean, it's good to know that I'm not being interrogated with every statement… it's relaxing even…" She paused to gather her wits before forging onward. "But… if our roles were reversed… I _can't_ promise that you'd have the same courtesy extended to you. I mean, we're literally worst enemies! Iwa hates Konoha's guts and you guys hate us for instigating the alliance that cost you a vital ally in the Uzumaki! So why the hell are you guys treating me like a fucking diplomatic envoy?! No, I've seen envoys treated worse -hell, _I've_ treated envoys worse! You guys, from day one, treated me like I was your _friend!_ "

"Aren't you?"

Naruto's reply, simple as it was, _floored_ her.

No, more than the words, it was the _honesty_ in his words… the sincerity that was so blatant it was almost palpable… _**that**_ was what took the legs right out from under her.

'He really _does_ think of us as friends…'

"Kurotsuchi, I don't know what you've come to see since Tenten and I brought you here but I hope it's been nothing but sincere friendship because that's what this has been to me: a true friendship born from a chance encounter." He leaned back on the tree and smiled. "I'm not trying to advertise Konoha or anything -because trust me, the underbelly of this beast is fucking filthy. I just want you to know that the whole 'village rivalries' and stuff… they were created in times of strife… times of war: yes, my dad ripped a hole in your village's militia but then your village started the war which itself had its roots in another Village… it's a fucking cycle, Kurotsuchi. War breeds resentments and hate so why should we carry those bitter pills down to the times of peace where they are nothing more than stumbling blocks?" He sighed as he stared upwards at a future only he seemed to see. "I really hope you consider me a friend, Kurotsuchi because to me? We were friends since you came screaming at me for 'noise making'."

For the first time since he had gotten to know her, the Iwa kunoichi's cheeks burnt crimson as she tried -and failed- to hold back her blush.

Knowing that she couldn't continue down _that_ line, she brought up something he had -finally- admitted. "You called him your dad."

"Hmm?"

"The Fourth Hokage." She clarified. "That was the first time since I got here that you admitted to him being your dad."

"Oh, that." The nonchalant way he said it made her wonder if he hadn't grown jaded to that little fact. Then, for the second time that evening, her perception of reality took a jarring turn. "Not too many people in Konoha know about that but I figured you'd have guessed it already so there was no need to throw our connection around needlessly. Didn't wanna antagonize you."

"Wait. Not too many people in _Konoha_ know?! What the hell are you- are you saying only a few people know that you're the son of the fucking _Yellow Flash_?! Their greatest fucking wartime hero? Are you serious?!"

"As a heart attack." He shrugged. "The Sandaime Hokage sealed the identity of my parents away in order to give me a bit of a safety net. He couldn't hide the news that I was -am- a jinchuriki but he could hide that one away."

"How… why the hell-"

"Are you telling me there wouldn't have been a few people back home that wouldn't have minded kidnapping baby-me in order to get revenge?" That shut her up immediately. "It may have cost me my childhood but it kept me alive so I'm not complaining."

She winced slightly at that: thanks to her relationship with her grandfather, she knew just how Han and Roshi had been treated for the startling majority of their lives and how it had affected them. The idea that Naruto had endured a similar life as a jinchuriki wasn't far fetched especially if he didn't have the 'my dad was the greatest war hero ever' buff to help mitigate the hate.

That he could still smile meant that he was either incredibly resilient or just bat shit crazy.

She was opting for the former no matter how often his random actions drove her spare.

"You're an odd guy, you know that?"

‹‹‡››

 ***- I'm not too certain of the action that triggered the Third War: I think it was the destruction of Uzu [prompting Konoha's swift and terrible vengeance] while the death of the Nidaime spurred the Second War. Whatever the case, I'm adjusting things such that the Nidaime died at the end of the Second War, fraying the Konoha-Kumo relationship and the destruction of Uzu simply triggered the Third.**

 **I also tried to maintain realism with the ages of the OCs in relation to the overall story: we know that very young people can rise to powerful positions given that they have the right aptitude for such [Kakashi as an ANBU captain, Minato as a Hokage likely in his mid-twenties (if not younger), Shikamaru as an adviser to the Hokage likely in his early twenties too] and so I'm thinking Shido and Inojin got to their posts by the time they were -max- 26. If I factor in the Second War lasting -max- 15 years and an interval of 10 years before the Third War kicked off, we can put their ages at about 51 years of age; old enough to not necessarily be front-liners but not old enough to be kicked off their posts, especially not with the level of experience they'd bring to bear for the young Sandaime's reign.**

 **This chapter should have been a part of the next but I chose to split them up in post-writing editing because the content felt too… different to have been smushed together.**

 **Anyway, please Read & Review.**


	36. Fissures: Chapter 35

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 35**

"Yo Baa-chan-!"

The drawled out greeting was cut short when a paperclip flying at supersonic speeds _impaled_ the speaker.

Who promptly went up in smoke.

"Geez, if I didn't know better, I'd swear that you had that paperclip waiting for me to walk through."

"Of course I had it waiting." Tsunade replied nonchalantly, not even remotely bothered by the fact that she had just killed one of her shinobi via improvised projectile, shadow clone or not. "Jiraiya's got one too though, so don't even think of getting a big head over it."

Naruto, ever the jokester, clutched his hands over his heart and swooned terribly. "How could you, Baa-chan?! I thought I meant something to you!"

"Doesn't make you any less of an annoyance than the Pervert." Signing her name off a bill with a flourish, the last Senju finally set her eyes on her pseudo-son. 'Goddamn, it's like staring at Minato all over again!' _That_ line of thought brought back memories of a certain Uzumaki challenging her to a no-holds barred spar over the heart of the soon-to-be Yondaime. It was especially funny when she recalled Kushina's stupid gaping when she casually turned the whole thing down with a few words:

" _You can have him squirt. It'd be too weird to bang one of the idiot's students."_

" _But-but… you're always staring!"_

" _Of course I am dumb-ass! I've seen him naked!"_

" _Whu- what?! When the hell did you see my man na-"_

" _I'm the ranking medic in the Village."_

" _... oh…"_

"Oh _is right squirt. Anyhow, I may not be interested in a relationship -sexual or otherwise- but I can't deny the bod on that stud. Pretty sure gods would be ashamed of his… equipment…"_

"Baa-chan? You there?"

The slight pressure of Naruto's hand on hers jerked her back to reality. "What?"

"You sorta spaced out for a minute there." Naruto said in a concerned tone as he returned to the seat on the other side of the table. "You're not pushing yourself too hard are you?"

"Nah, I've been resting enough and Shizune has been conscientious about feeding me since she knows its the only way I'll keep out of the bottle." The blonde Hokage sat back and smirked at him. "Honestly, I was just reminiscing."

"Oh~… lost loves?"

"More like lost lusts." She snorted. "Your mom once tried to fight me over access to your dad's heart." When his jaw dropped, she smirked and continued, "Yeah, Kushina felt I was a threat to her love life cause I was always staring at your dad. Of course, after seeing him in his birthday suit, it shouldn't have been a surprise." Deciding to prank the Master, Tsunade pulled every bit of acting talent she had to the fore as she sighed dreamily, her eyes gaining a faraway look. "Kid, I saw your old man naked and believe me, he was fucking _ripped._ "

"You… _what?!_ _ **When?!**_ "

The fact that he was almost croaking in shock while almost perfectly re-enacting his mother's reaction sent Tsunade into mental cackles. "Hello? Former head medic here? I ran a physio on him following a mission and I saw him nude. Talk about a sex god! His dick was-"

" **Hell no!** " He almost tapped into Kyubi's chakra to enforce is will as he leaped out of his seat with bloodshot eyes. "We are **not** talking about your crush on my dad and your cradle-robbing tendencies!"

The Hokage office was silent save for the sounds of harsh breathing and barely restrained laughter.

At last, Tsunade couldn't hold it in any longer and burst into almost maniacal laughter.

It took two solid minutes before Naruto connected the dots.

"You are evil, Baa-chan." He sulked as he collapsed into the seat. "Pure fucking evil."

"Please. You know what a well executed prank feels like." Tsunade smirked mid-laugh. "Now you know what it feels like to be on the receiving end of one."

"Are you kidding me?!" He yelled back in chagrin. "You not only _scarred_ me, you have me wondering if all those back-rubs you offered aren't your twisted way of making up for lost time!"

"You would think that wouldn't you? Pervert."

"Coming from the woman who lusted after a guy who was young enough to be her baby brother?" He fired back instantly. "And saying it in front of said guy's son who looks pretty convincingly like his dad? Pot-kettle much?"

"Never said I wasn't a pervert brat." She rejoined with a smug grin that was instantly wiped off by Naruto's response.

"I wonder what Ero-Sennin would say about that admission…"

"He'd be saying condolences at your funeral while in a full body cast." She hissed viciously.

The two blondes glared intensely at each other for a few moments before bursting into laughter.

"Alright Baa-chan." Naruto said when he finally caught his breath. "What's so urgent that you dragged me away from my D-ranks? I've still got about a week of those left, you know."

The question prompted a change in Tsunade's countenance that had him sitting attentively without consciously realizing it. "I've got a mission for you. A- possibly S-rank, solo and situated right here in Konoha."

The revelation of the location drew his focus even more. "A conspiracy?"

"Nothing quite so serious." Tsunade amended as she stood up and walked to the window that overlooked the Village. "The rank is more in tune with the kinds of information you might end up dealing with.

"In the aftermath of the Chūnin Exam Invasion, Konoha was faced with the worst housing crisis we'd ever experienced, a problem that was exacerbated by an influx of new residents."

"New residents?"

"We were able to beat back an invasion force backed by a Major Hidden Village and a rising minor one while taking -considering the circumstances- minimal losses." She explained. "To the rest of the world, that just fortified our rank as the Strongest Village and, with rumors of war brewing, people flocked in accordingly."

"Oh…" The effects of battles, wars and reputation on a Village's population had been lightly touched upon in the Academy but it had always seemed more like an abstract concept than anything else practical.

Until now.

"Like I said, we experienced a population upsurge in the year after the Invasion." Tsunade continued as she returned to the table. "It stabilized by the second year, with the whispers of war having faded but the Housing Committee have been leaving reminders about how we can't deal with another such influx* and I've decided to do something about it that doesn't involve the level of construction that annexing the Village will. At least, in the interim." She pushed a file over to him. "We need to repurpose the lands that aren't in use right now and there's a huge swathe of land we've got tied up for no good reason."

A quick glance through the file had him sucking in air through his teeth. "The Uchiha Compound? Pretty sure there'll be a lot of bleating opposition."

"Perhaps." Tsunade admitted before gaining a steely eyed look. "Let them bleat. I'll shear their fucking coats off."

He arched an eyebrow at her. "You're oddly determined about this."

"I'm done playing the good shepherd." She growled. "I've already allocated a portion of the Senju lands for the same purpose to appease whichever fuck-wads think of using them against me."

"They'll try to claim cultural heritage or something along those lines."

"The draft I've prepared phrases this as a deal: Konoha leases the land until affected clans grow to the point of requiring their lands back at which point the Village relinquishes its ownership while the annual pay going into the clan accounts in exchange are cut off." She replied steadily. "Should the land remain unclaimed for over a hundred years then the Village retains full ownership of the land and the payment stops. If the clan accounts remain dormant that long then the Village reacquires their funds in those accounts as well."

He whistled softly. "Wow. You've got this all laid out."

"Damn right." She scoffed. "Like I said: let them fucking bleat."

He smirked at the phrase as he took in the scope of the mission again. "So, why me?"

"Besides the fact that you're a one-man army?" She sighed. "I trust you, Naruto. More than I trust damn near anyone else." She tapped out a specific sequence on the table and a small compartment popped up. "If this is to work then we need to verify that the compound has no hidden traps or Village secrets lying around." She reached into the compartment and pulled out what Naruto instantly recognized as a seal tag. "Jiraiya, Inoichi and Kakashi worked for a few months to create this marvel."

"What's it do?" He asked as he took the proffered tag.

"It emulates the sharingan's ability to see chakra."

He just about _flung_ the seal away in shock.

Tsunade had expected such a response, though, so she was able to continue seemingly unperturbed by his reaction. "It can't do any thing else the sharingan does: no technique copying, no time dilation effect… nothing. The only thing it does is to allow the wielder to see chakra in much the same way as a born-Uchiha can. It'll allow you to see whatever might be hidden in the compounds as you go." When she noticed that he still seemed stunned, she decided to dump it all on him at once. "Jiraiya originally intended to create a full on sharingan tag but, according to Inoichi, the seal would have to perform some serious neural rewiring for the tag to work and, for all the incredible versatility of seals, surgery happens to be the one thing they can't _do_.*"

Naruto's brain finally came back online. "Baa-chan, I get that. Believe me I do. But a seal that allows the wielder to see _chakra the way a sharingan does_? God damn!"

"Do you now understand why I chose you to take this mission?" Tsunade asked, all hints of teasing gone from her features. "A seal like this being used to scan the compound of one of history's most powerful warrior clans…"

"There'll be tons of clan secrets lying around." He finished somberly. "Techniques, information, things that would either rocket a person to the top of the shinobi totem pole or provide the black market with the tools needed to trigger a new, devastating war."

Tsunade nodded.

The weight of the task set before him struck him at that moment and he all but shrank into himself. "But… why me? I mean, how do you know that I won't abuse this?"

The question tugged at the Last Senju's heartstrings and motherly instincts she rarely felt surged up. Never before had she so desperately wanted to comfort a person as she did right then.

Reaching out, she grabbed his hand and, when he looked up, she stared right into his eyes, the power of her conviction shining brightly. "Because I trust you, Naruto. No, more than that, I have the utmost faith in _you_. Yes, you made a deal with Kyubi and I should be scared that she might turn you into something else but I have the utmost faith in your ability to do what is _right_. Whatever your actions are, however they might seem, I will _**always**_ trust that you are doing what is right."

They remained like that for an indeterminable amount of time: the old woman doing her best to project her conviction to the one she had come to see as a son while the young man, for the first time in his life, basked in pure, maternal love.

The moment was broken when he stood up, placed his right fist over his heart and took a deep bow. "I will not fail you, Hokage-sama."

'I don't expect you to, Naruto.' She thought with a smile as she watched him head out to tackle the task, greeting Shizune on his way out. "Shizune?" She knew the look In the young woman's eyes: something was _terribly wrong._

"Tsunade-sama… Forgive me but I can't hide this from you any longer." The dark haired woman dropped to her knees and prostrated herself before her teacher, tears spilling from her eyes as she moved. "I'm so sorry…"

To say that Tsunade was stunned was an understatement; she had _**never**_ been prostrated to before and the fact that it came from one so close to her had her terrified. "Shizune, what's wrong?"

Shizune couldn't speak; all she could do was present an ominously plain looking folder to her.

‹‹‡››

Right about then, Shio watched as Mitarashi Anko interrogated one of Sasori's identified plants, an administrative officer in the Missions Allocation department called Kaizuki Shinagara.

Under his dircetives, the infamous purple-haired interrogator had gone for a softer approach, letting Kaizuki know from the onset that they knew that he wasn't a willing spy and that they just wanted to know the extent to which his mind had been subverted.

It was just one of the many approaches they had going at the moment with more than twelve different interrogation rooms all active at the same time.

Not a single one had yielded any fruit.

"Have you not heard a word I've said all day?!" The brown haired chunin all but screamed at Anko, his bloodshot eyes growing just a bit crazier. "I have **never** done anything against the Village! I have **never** met any informants or whatever you are accusing me of! I've never even had the **thought** of betraying the Leaf!" The man was practically foaming at the mouth now as he charged toward a random wall and pounded on it violently, uncaring for how his knuckles splis and blood dribbled down his fist. "How the hell can I be a spy?!"

On the other side of the wall, Shio shook his head in disappointment as he watched the man experience a mental breakdown. It wasn't the first time; over the past three days, he had watched all of Sasori's plants ultimately devolve into this very state regardless of the approach they took, the only difference being how long it took for each person to crack.

With a sigh, he tapped the earpiece attached to his headset. "Put him down Anko; I'll let Yamanaka-san know to get his people ready. We'll start things bright and early tomorrow."

In the room, Anko sighed as she drew a kunai and prepared to knock the man down only to pause when she noticed that he had gone deathly still.

"Maybe we've caught a break after-"

"Hello Anko-chan." Faster than many shinobi could _blink_ , she was in front of the raven haired chunin, the bladed edge of her kunai digging into his throat. "Not the welcome I was expecting from you."

"What the hell are you doing here?" She snarled, the only thing holding her back from simply carving his neck up being the fact that this _wasn't_ Orochimaru. Not really.

"Well, for one thing, I'm wondering how you picked up on the fact that Kaizuki-kun has been a mole. Could myold home be wising up to my tricks, I wonder?"

"You just have shit luck as usual." She sneered venomously. "Your little bitch wasn't just a spy for you, he was also selling secrets to the Akatsuki and Iwa."

It was a carefully engineered lie; taking truths and mixing them with falsehoods to ensure that her old sensei would remain in the dark as to how much Konoha knew about his operations.

"Well, well… who knew little Kanzuki would end up being such a traitor?" A jolt of lightning ran through the 'borrowed' body, drawing his attention to the irate kunoichi before him. "Now now, Anko-chan, push too far and you'll lose any intel Kaizuki's got prowling around in his noggin."

"Talk."

"Alright then, you've always been a very down-to-business kind of girl." He sighed in a faux-saddened tone. "Well, please let Uzumaki-kun know that Sasuke-kun is ready to finish what he started at the Valley of the End. He's interested in a Team Seven reunion, too, so he would like to see little Sakura as well. Of course, seeing as three's already a crowd, no one else is allowed on this little excursion. Have them head over to the Valley; they'll get the exact time and address of this little soiree there." He stepped back and took a low, mocking bow. "But hurry. This little window will shut itself in six hours and they'll have to wait for years until they get this kind of opportunity."

And with that, Kaizuki's body dropped to the ground like a sack.

‹‹‡››

 ***- Shio means salt and is a little joke I tossed in for the members of the cryptanalysis department: their official codenames all have something to do with food. After all, who cooks meat (the ANBU codenames are animals after all) without spices? Sorry; just a random blurb kinda thing XD**

 ***- Regarding the population thing: before you tell me that they can just grow houses please remember that the reconstruction after the Pein arc occurred on a barren area of land. In the aftermath of the Invasion, where the destruction was sporadic and individuals whose homes remained intact wouldn't have wanted their property touched, full scale reconstruction like that wouldn't have been possible with all the infrastructure still lying about.**

 ***- Jiraiya, being the seal master, did the actual work on the seal. Kakashi simply provided access to a working sharingan and Inoichi bridged their minds so that Jiraiya could see what Kakashi did. The seal itself is basically a glorified filter like an infrared filter on a pair of binoculars, this allows the wielder to see the world through a 'sharingan' filter.' In my head, a byakugan sees chakra** _ **within**_ **the individual as tenketsu, reserves and pathways. A sharingan sees the** _ **flow**_ **of chakra both within and outside a body. It would explain why they can copy techniques: because they see how the chakra flows to create the technique where the byakugan only sees the burst of chakra usage instead.**

 _ **So, if it wasn't obvious, this takes place three days after the last chapter and a few more secrets are revealed including Tsunade now getting to know what Shizune's been hiding.**_

 _ **Also: the challenge has been given and the gauntlet has been thrown down: the inevitable Naruto v Sasuke fight is upon us!**_

 _ **We'll have to see how that plays out in the coming chapters.**_

 _ **Please Read and Review**_


	37. Fissures: Chapter 36

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 36**

Tsunade had felt anger on many levels throughout her life: the barely suppressed rage that she had experienced when she was told that her bid to create unit of combat-oriented medics was politically blocked because 'there was no time for experiments in times of war'; the playful anger that only Jiraiya and his perverted antics could inspire; the bitter fury that had led her to utterly decimate an entire platoon of Kumo-nin following Dan's death…

For the first time in her life, she was experiencing an anger so… _**black**_ that every cell in her body _radiated_ **hate**.

"Shizune." Contrary to the demonic rage she felt, her tone sounded calm. Deathly so, in fact. "How did you get this?"

The black haired jonin, having been assured by her closest friend that she didn't hold anything against her, was now standing before the Hokage, ready to aid her in whatever way she could. "The Archivist, Hinamori Shiho compiled the reports when I brought the matter before her, Hokage-sama. She has spent the past month collating, analyzing and interpreting the data in the file."

Tsunade sat back and released a steady breath. Shizune's words were clear: every detail in that report had been checked and cross-checked by one of the most brilliant data analysts in the Village, one with absolutely zero ties to any faction beyond the seat of the Hokage. That was good as it meant that Shizune hadn't run off half-cocked and brought haphazardly compiled reports to her yet something still bothered her: according to her, Shizune had 'brought the matter' to Shiho. "How did you- no, what jumped at you to make you want to dig in this exact direction, Shizune?"

It was not an accusatory question, though it might have seemed like that to some; rather, it was a simple inquiry: what oddity jumped out at her that prompted Shizune to begin asking the questions that led them to this point?

Shizune understood that underlying meaning and was swift to come clean. " _I_ didn't notice anything, Hokage-sama… Naruto did."

It was a testament to how much she had come to associate the unexpected with the blond that Tsunade didn't even bat an eye at the admission. After all, many took it for granted when they joked about the boy's brain being 'wired differently' without realizing that they were pretty much on the mark: Naruto had a tendency to see things in a manner that suggested that he didn't even know of the existence of the 'box' that others seemed to restrict their thoughts to. "Did he tell you his reason for asking?"

"He wanted to know how it was that the Senju died out years before the Uchiha did even though they held the numerical advantage."

"He noticed things no one seemed to." Again, it wasn't surprising; after being overlooked himself, it seemed as though his time with Jiraiya had sharpened his ability to see beyond the obvious and peer into the shadows. Tsunade fought the urge to scoff at her own myopia: she had buried herself in her vices to run from the losses she had suffered but even before _those_ events, not once had she opened her eyes to the obvious.

Shizune had, of course, agreed with her comment. "He had a few more questions but they all seemed to stem from that core question first."

"So he asked you and you had Shiho run the investigation?"

"Not… not quite…" The jonin gripped her left arm just below the elbow and bowed her head. "Naruto provided a clone that ran the investigation; I simply had Shiho grant him temporary _Archivist_ access."

Tsunade almost scoffed at that: though she trusted Naruto with her life and Shizune even more than that, there were many who would demand her head for such an action. "So he knows about this-"

"He doesn't." Shizune corrected. "He brought this matter to me on the night he was dispatched to Suna to aid in the recovery of the Kazekage. As a result of the suddenness of that mission, he created a clone to carry out the investigation while he was away. By that clone's admission, it has chosen to keep the details of this investigation away from its creator until you have seen-"

Before she could finish the sentence, a frantic looking messenger burst through the door. "Hokage-sama! Word from the T&I unit!"

"What it it?"

"Uchiha Sasuke… he's calling out his old teammates!"

‹‹‡››

As he raced alongside Sakura to the Valley of the End, Naruto found himself -yet again- sighing at the situation of things back home.

For the first time since he his first meeting with her, he had his first, full-blown argument with Mirajane.

Following his and Sakura's decision to hunt down their traitorous teammate on _his_ terms -a decision that had, itself, spawned a furious counter argument from Tsunade, Shizune and Kakashi- Naruto had raced home to prepare, casually tossing out the details of the mission to Erza, Mira and Yuki as he moved.

When Mira suggested that he take one of them -if not all three- along as back-up, he had casually waved her suggestion away.

It was, perhaps, a sign that he had grown too accustomed to her typically flouncy, subservient behaviour and had forgotten that she was a _Queen_ because he was stunned by her vehement response -a decree, really- that he would most assuredly _not_ be leaving the Village without a form of support from them.

Then, in a truly stunning turn of events, _Erza_ had flat out supported his decision!

 **FLASHBACK**

"Aren't you a shinobi? I thought your whole thing was to fight to win and disregard honor! You're not a fucking samurai!"

"I'm not saying that I am!" He yelled back in exasperation. They had been having this back and forth argument for well over twenty minutes now and his self-control was seriously beginning to fray. "But this is more than just a fight! Sasuke is more than just some random enemy! He was my rival! Beating him with anything less than my own strength is just… it's going to feel wrong!"

"And if you die?" Mira shot back furiously, wondering why he just couldn't see her point. "This Sasuke has -by your own admission no less!- shown absolutely _zero_ hesitation to land a killing blow on you! He did it the last time you fought because if you don't remember then you can be sure as hell that every time I see that damned scar I _**always**_ remember!" Little knickknacks strewn around the room began to vibrate as her skin took on a purple hue. It took all of her mental fortitude to restrain herself from simply activating her _Seilah_ soul and Macro-ing his ass into staying! "This is the same guy that threw his friendship away to go shack up with the biggest traitor your Village has ever known outside Itachi Uchiha who -coincidentally- happens to be this shit stain's brother! You don't think he's genetically predisposed to cheat in this little fight of yours? Because I'll bet my ass on that!"

"Enough."

Both turned their gazes onto the speaker, their eyes reflecting what they thought: Mira's eyes glowed with an internal satisfaction, after all, Erza was, among the four of them, a Guardian to her core: she would **never** agree to Naruto's folly.

On the other hand, Naruto's exasperation was a single step away from outright annoyance. If Erza sided with Mira -and there was no way _that_ wouldn't happen- then he was in for even **more** needless explanations. The whole thing was becoming such a drag that he was tempted to simply distract them and get the hell out of dodge.

With these thoughts on their minds, their stupidly gaping looks after hearing what she had to say could easily be forgiven.

"I'm sorry-What?!"

"I believe both of you heard me quite clearly." The Knightwalker sighed as she rose to her feet, drawing their absolute attention. "Naruto-sama is right: this is a battle that he needs to see through on his own."

"She- she gets it!" The blond Uzumaki was stunned at the mere concept that Erza was agreeing with him before launching himself at her and hugging her tightly. "You get it! Thank you!"

"It shouldn't be a surprise." Yuki added, having foreseen Erza's decision. "Erza-sama, more than just about any of us, understands the position you are in right now, Naruto-sama."

Turning to a shell-shocked Mira, Erza sighed again. "This fight is much more than a mere contest of skill and strength as shinobi; it is a battle of ideals Mira. Naruto-sama seeks to prove decisively that his former teammate was wrong to sever his bonds in a blind lust for power. To bring reinforcements to this fight…"

"Is preferable to him _**dying**_ in some back-alley because fucking _honor_ dictates that he has to walk into a bloody ambush?!"

"Seeing as Naruto-sama must leave soon and he will likely remain adamant as regards his choice in this matter, might I make a suggestion, Mirajane-sama?" Yuki stepped in politely. "My shadows give me a unique connection to Naruto-sama regardless of the physical distance between us. Though it will require that I expend a bit more energy than usual, I can allow you and Erza-sama to tap into my shadows to keep an eye on the battle. Should the situation take a turn for the worse, I can pull us in to join Naruto-sama."

The Succubus Queen opened her mouth, clearly ready to sweep that thought away only to be interrupted by a stern glare from Erza.

"It is an acceptable compromise, Yuki. Thank you." The red haired kitsune pulled away from her beloved's embrace and nodded to him. "We will be expecting you home."

"Thank you Erza, Yuki." He nodded his appreciation to them both before turning to an obviously irate Mirajane. "I promise to return with all my parts complete and fully functioning." Though he had framed it as a joke, not a single person in the room missed the steely determination that rang beneath the humor as he turned to leave, his equipment already packed within the scrolls arrayed on his bandolier.

"Naruto."

He paused and turned to his white-haired Queen.

"I won't be satisfied with anything less than a comatose, critically wounded Uchiha upon your return."

He couldn't help the smirk that tugged on his lips.

It was good to see that, even in the aftermath of their big argument, she still thought of him.

 **END FLASHBACK**

Now _ **that**_ had been a shocking turn of events!

Nevertheless, the closer they got to the Valley, the more Naruto found his thoughts shifting toward the coming confrontation.

A battle of ideals, Erza had called it and she couldn't have been more accurate. Thanks to Jiraiya and Kyubi, he had been forced to face the truth about Sasuke: the last Uchiha had been nothing more than a spoilt brat who, having begun to believe his own hype, couldn't stand the possibility that someone that he had deemed 'inferior' was well on their way to surpassing him. He had hidden his flaws behind the admittedly vicious paradigm shift Itachi had forced unto him and had chosen to believe that the world existed as he saw it and, when his view of reality was forcefully shattered, rather than pick up the pieces and face reality as it was, he had chosen to take the easiest path presented to him, breaking every meaningful bond he had forged in his power lust.

It was up to him, as a former rival and friend, to beat sense into the stupid Uchiha's skull.

Or, should that prove impossible, simply pound the Uchiha into 'a comatose, critically wounded' mess.

‹‹‡››

While Naruto steeled himself up for the battle to come, his pink haired teammate had just come to a decision, one that she felt was long overdue.

"Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"When we find him… be it at the Valley or not, I want you to go all out on him from the get go."

"Sakura, we're a team; we're bringing him back together."

The confidence in his words was heartwarming but the reality checks Tsunade had forced on her ensured that she remained focused on what _was_ as opposed to what _could be._

"Naruto, I'm proud of my achievements and all but I have watched the two of you since we were kids. I know that there are very few who match the raw potential you two have and even fewer have the ambition to see that potential realized."

"Now's really not the time for self-doubt, Sakura."

"I agree. Except this isn't self doubt; if anything, it's honesty born of confidence: three years after we split up with a Sannin to teach each of us and where are we? I'm a mid-tier chunin with the potential to be a jonin in a year or two. _You_ on the other hand, were _held back_ from being promoted to jonin by the Hokage and only because you don't have the required leadership experience. And I don't expect Sasuke to have slacked off even a minute meaning he's likely a jonin-level shinobi as well. Do you see where I'm headed now?"

Naruto didn't say a word, a reaction which showed just how different her old teammate was -because the _old_ Naruto would have yelled about how awesome she was even in the face of blatant proof otherwise.

"I have a gut feeling that I'll be little more than a liability should I get between you and Sasuke." The rosette haired kunoichi raised a palm to forestall any questions. She had seen her blond teammate's tremendous skill during the test the Hokage had held for him upon his return to the Village and, while she would love to maintain her childish illusions of Team Seven's togetherness and her ability to stand as equals with her teammates, Tsunade had taken the time to beat such naive fabrications out of her head: much like the Godaime, her natural talents lent themselves to be more of an offensive support than a flat out front-liner like those two. At the same time, Sasuke had only ever had his focus on Naruto and his phenomenal growth when they were younger and it was unlikely that such focus would change drastically.

Confident as she was in her abilities, she knew her limits: she couldn't directly confront Sasuke; not without taking the time to analyze his present abilities and skill set lest he cut her down like she was nothing more than a sheaf of wheat. At the same time, her mere presence meant that the one person who _could_ match their traitorous teammate would be fighting an unfocused battle as he tried to defeat the last Uchiha while protecting her.

Such battles as this could never be approached with less than a hundred percent focus.

"Naruto _please_. Sasuke won't hesitate to cut you down; you know this as well as I do -no, you know that even _more_ than I could ever hope to understand." Her voice wavered as she spoke, recalling the last time her teammates had clashed and the horrific feeling of sitting outside the Emergency and, later, the Intensive Care rooms, waiting and praying desperately that he would pull through as he always did yet dreading the news that he hadn't. "I can't lose you, Naruto. I can't lose the only brother I've got."

Her admission came out of nowhere and Naruto found that he had to stop to process her words.

"What?"

"I… I didn't want to tell you because I wasn't sure how you'd take it with how I acted towards you when we were younger." The rosette couldn't bring herself to look him in the eyes, wracked by the shame and guilt of her childhood actions. "Tsunade-sama… In the early stages of my training, she forced me to look back on myself to figure out what and who I wanted to be. It forced me to open my eyes to a number of things." Her left hand came up to rub at her right elbow. "At first, I treated you… the way I did back then because I wanted to fit in. I was tired of being 'Forehead Girl' and so, when I noticed how the other kids treated you, I jumped at the opportunity to have someone be lower on the pole than me. Never mind that you had chased off my bullies the first time we met or that I enjoyed our first day together; I just saw an opportunity to be accepted by everyone else so…"

"So you threw me to the dogs."

The cold, dispassionate statement cut to her core but Sakura knew that there was no point hiding anything with pitiful displays of anger. No, now was the time for the truth. "I did. And by the time we became teammates, it had become an ingrained habit. It didn't help that the object of my infatuation was with us, no it made things worse: I couldn't take a step if _Sasuke-kun_ hadn't ordered it." She spate the last sentence with a shocking amount of vitriol and -buried deep beneath- self-loathing. "It didn't matter that a part of me appreciated your efforts to keep me happy, hell it didn't matter that I had become somewhat hooked to your presence: when _Sasuke-kun_ came onto the scene, my brains leaped right the fuck out.

"But when Shisho forced me to see past all my stupid shit… I realized that I had come to see you as… a brother. I guess I treated you like a younger brother whose presence annoyed me when all I wanted was to play with my friends but whose presence I couldn't bear to lose."

A terse silence descended on the two like a thick fog as she waited for him to respond yet, when he did, it was from a completely different angle, albeit the same one that had thrust her into her confession.

"So you want me to do everything I can to bring Sasuke back."

It was so completely detached from her heart-wrenching outburst that Sakura found herself worrying about what to say: was it all a test? A way to determine the depth of her professed feelings? Or was it something more?

She simply had no way of knowing and, in that moment, she decided to be as blunt as she could.

"Yes. Whatever it takes."

"Why?"

"Because I'd rather have him in Konoha with _us_ where there's even the slightest chance of helping him break free of his hatred and lust for vengeance than leave him out there with _them_ , those who only see his as an asset until they get what they want out of him."

The cynical way he scoffed felt _wrong_ to her in the same way a bulimic Choji would seem: cynicism was an unnatural thing on her teammate. "You realize that half the reason they want him back in Konoha, pretty much the _only_ reason the Council has proffered to stop Baa-chan from filing his ass under missing-nin status is because too many people see 'the Last Uchiha' rather than Sasuke, right? As soon as he's put a bun or three in a number of ovens, he'll lose pretty much _any_ political leverage his clan gave him. His desertion attempt nearly cost Konoha the lives of _four_ clan heirs and the life of Sunagakure's jinchuriki. There's too much red in his ledger to simply go scot-free."

"It's still a better choice than the alternative."

And it was: whether many liked it or not, the prestige of the Uchiha clan and their incredible combat prowess thanks to their doujutsu had played vital roles in keeping Konoha atop the totem pole in the Elemental Nations.

It was in their best interests to keep it that way.

Naruto pressed his lips into a thin line before exploding into motion again, swiftly followed by his pink-haired teammate.

"You say you want me to go all out," he stated quietly, his words almost lost in the wildly whipping winds, "but I don't think you understand what that really means."

Sakura had a decent idea what he meant, though. After all, self-reflection had a way of opening ones eyes to see things from new angles and for one as intelligent as herself, it hadn't taken too long to figure out the truth.

That she hadn't told anyone, Naruto included, had to do with her budding maturity: it wasn't her burden to share. He would tell her when he saw fit; she would simply be patient and support him however she could.

"I know more than you'd think, Naruto, and I trust you to do whatever you deem necessary."

‹‹‡››

Back in Konoha, Shizune and Tsunade were deep into their plotting.

"The conspiracy may have begun with the Uchiha and the Yamanaka, Shizune, but I don't think we're dealing with whoever Inojin and Shido extended their little cult to." Tsunade argued. "Not the direct descendants any way."

"But there's no other candidate for this, Hokage-sama." Shizune rejoined. "I had Shiho dig into as any possible sources as she could think of and the results remain the same: the only possibilities were the left-overs of this coalition."

"Well we're missing the Uchiha half right now and I sincerely doubt the possibility that Inoichi's been working a conspiracy against the Village, not unless Shikaku and Choza are in on it as well and if _that's_ the case then we're already fucked."

The mere thought that all three heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio were involved in a conspiracy was an absolute worst-case scenario and both women knew that.

"We need to investigate this, Shizune." Tsunade stated. "And we need to do it between ourselves and those we absolutely trust."

"I'll get a message across to Jiraiya-sama." Shizune nodded. "Should we bring Naruto into this?"

Tsunade shook her head. "Not yet. He's already working on something for me and I'm not sure piling more of this onto his shoulders is advisable."

"Understood, Hokage-sama." The dark haired jonin turned to walk away only to pause when she heard her name.

"Start with the Merchant's Association and their economic ties." Tsunade stated with a pensive frown on her face. "Something's… I don't know why but I've got the feeling that something's off about them."

‹‹‡››

"He's there." Naruto stated with a frown as he stared at the silhouette of the Founders' Statues in the distance. He had just received a report from the pair of clones he had sent forth as scouts and now, three miles away from the Valley, he had to make up his mind as to whether or not he should take Sakura's words to heart and go in full bore against someone he had once considered a friend, no, a _brother_.

Unfortunately, the decision was -at least temporarily- taken away from him.

"Shinranshin."

The technique's name was whispered so softly that he barely heard it even as he felt a jolt of foreign chakra rush through his system and he could do nothing more than crumple like a puppet whose strings had been cut.

His mind railed at the perceived betrayal, cursing him for his blind trust of the girl that even now stared down at him with teary eyes.

"I'm sorry, Naruto." Strands of her pink hair swayed about in the light breeze of the night, catching the moonlight in intricate ways. It was a beautiful sight, marred only by the regret in her eyes. "I'm so sorry."

She didn't say more; she simply stood up and walked toward the Valley of the End, knowing very well how apt the name might be for her come morning.

Deep inside, her heart quailed at all the lies that she had told and the look of shock on Naruto's face as he crumpled to the ground yet she consoled herself with a single thought: it would all be worth it if she could defeat Sasuke.

A _huge_ 'if' but she was confident in her plan.

The Last Uchiha would brush her aside as insignificant, thinking her the same, naive little girl he had left behind all those years ago. He wouldn't take her serious and would likely attempt to cut her down in one go.

'Let him try.'

‹‹‡››

 **Before you murder me for both the cliffhanger and the Sakura twist (especially the latter) please understand that this story is well fleshed out and I know exactly where I'm going with this. Everything you've read has led up to this point and I can assure you that this will also lead into the next chapter.**

 **Seriously though: do NOT rage at me for that twist. there are factors at play here so please just leave the hate out till the follow up chapter. If _that_ doesn't assuage any fears then i' game.**

 **Please Review (Seriously. The abundance of faves and follows compared to the lack of reviews is flat out discouraging. I need to know what you guys think of this please! Feedback is absolutely appreciated!)**


	38. Fissures: Chapter 37

**The Contract**

 _ **[Before I begin, I'd like to thank MrLightYagami for pointing out the character tag thing. I can't believe I forgot!]**_

 **EDIT: Forgot to put in the technique names in the right languages. Sorry!**

 **Chapter 37**

"Hello Sasuke."

The Uchiha traitor stared at the pink haired girl dispassionately, his eyes possessing no more life than twin lumps of coal. "What are you doing here, Sakura?"

"You asked for a team reunion didn't you?" She cocked her head to the side, a childish-seeming motion that was at odds with the cold fury in her eyes. "I believe Team Seven had three members."

"And you think yourself one of us?" The response was swift; coolly delivered as though he was asking a simple, casual question yet it cut deeper than any blade could. And he had only just begun. "Kakashi, ineffectual as he was, acted as the sensei; Naruto, idiot that he is, was a decent meat shield with his clones. And you?" He clicked his tongue in a truly derogatory manner. "Well, I suppose you _were_ effective bait."

The pink haired kunoichi bit back the urge to simply charge forward at him, knowing that he was almost certainly prepared for such a tact. "And you're the pretty boy traitor who's too stupid to realize that he's being played like a fiddle."

"Is that your angle then? Throw a few insults before crying about how you'll gladly desert the Leaf for me?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him and squared her shoulders as she settled into her fighting stance. "You'd have to _beat_ those tears out of me."

" _It would be a waste of my time._ "

He was behind her in less than a second, the figure she had focused on blurring away as the sound of a blade clearing its sheath whispered behind her before slicing through her torso.

Two halves of a log dropped to the ground.

In the next instant, like an avenging angel, Sakura dropped from the sky and slammed her fist into the ground, unleashing a powerful shockwave that flung Sasuke back bodily.

Skilled warrior that he was, though, Sasuke was able to contort his body such that he struck the ground with both feet. He had only a second to notice that, for all the power she had thrown to that punch, the ground hadn't been shattered by her punch before she was on him, unleashing a furious combo of punches and kicks that dispersed the air with violent snaps. He didn't need outside assistance to tell that those punches would cripple him if they struck; the blow-back of the winds' dispersion was enough of a hint to that and he found himself reconsidering the pink haired kunoichi.

The Sakura he had known was an abominable creature: a fool who knew not what it was to be a shinobi. That Sakura sought him out because of childish affections that would never do more than make her an ever worse pile of luggage to be saddled with, useful only as a distraction and, perhaps, a meat shield.

A liability, in a word.

 _This_ Sakura, however, was a warrior through and through. Her stances were tight, guarded, yet her motions swift and decisive, flowing one to another in a seamless pattern that would have caught a lesser foe. Her strength was devastating and her speed nothing to scoff at yet, her most telling aspect were here eyes: the naive, glittering eyes he had known had been replaced by these cold, emotionless orbs that radiated an absolute determination.

She wanted to bring him down and nothing would shake that resolve.

He thought it quite amusing that she thought she could take him and he decided to show her just how wide the gap between them was.

Midway through dodging yet another set of punches, his hands lashed out like vipers, slipping past the most minute opening in her guard to slap the insides of her forearms aside and leaving her torso unguarded. Without losing a step, he threw his upper body backward and lifted his feet to strike her exposed chest before flipping into the air, his hands coming together in his go-to technique. A few seconds later, a fireball as wide as she was tall came screaming down at her. He knew that it wouldn't be enough to get her -not unless he was severely off regarding her skill level- so he used the thrust provided by his ejecting the technique to fly even higher up in the air, fingers blazing through a new set of handseals. As he pulled his hands apart in preparation for the final seal, they darted into his weapons pouch and pulled out a dozen shuriken which he flung out just before his hands came together in the tiger seal. A dozen fireballs flew downwards, seeking out their prey even as they concealed the shuriken within.

Sakura was easy to find: as soon as she had spotted the Grand Fireball racing at her, she smashed her fist into the ground, propelling a huge slab of rock out of the ground to intercept the fiery missile. The rock practically disintegrated; such was the force behind the Grand Fireball but it had served its purpose. She was just about to go on the hunt for Sasuke when her senses screamed at her to move. It was a warning she had learned to simply obey and it saved her life once more, her instant obedience allowing her to get clear before one of the Phoenix Flower Fireballs struck the ground and showered her in soil and stringy grass. She kept on moving, though, knowing that the technique in question was never utilized as a single fireball. Five seconds later, she had dodged all twelve fireballs and was glaring at a smugly smirking Sasuke. Bursting into a dashing run, she noted his eyes widen in shock at her sudden lunge, her speed carrying her over the ten feet that separated them in what seemed to be an instant. Her right fist was cocked and ready to start off another bout of close quarter combat when she suddenly went deathly still, feeling the bite of premium grade ninja wire sinking into her skin and she seemed to curse softly.

Most Uchiha were naturally gifted at shurikenjutsu and Sasuke, having expanded on the rudiments his brother had taught him, was a formidable wielder of the stars and wire concerto.

She had been caught.

"Well, it looks like little Sakura-chan finally grew up." He asked as he stopped exactly four feet away from her bound form. He had used the term of endearment, one he had never uttered before and one that he was certain she had always dreamed to hear as yet another weapon of psychological warfare. "Did you think your meagre display of skill would amount to anything, Sakura? Did you think I would grow so impressed by how strong you are and swoon at how great my little 'Cherry Blossom' has become?" He scoffed in disgust at the pink haired kunoichi.

Sakura, for her part, couldn't utter a word, the razor sharp wire at her throat a deadly reminder of her predicament yet her tensed muscles _vibrated_ in unbridled fury at the boy she had once thought of as the love of her life. The wires around her arms and legs drew blood as they bit deeper into her skin and, as she saw his clan's infamous dōjutsu come to life, she knew that the Sasuke she had known was dead, leaving behind this husk that wanted nothing but vengeance and gloried in the pain of others.

It started out slowly: a crackle one moment, a chirp the next, growing steadily in pitch and frequency until the screech of a thousand chirping birds dominated the clearing.

"I don't know what you thought you were doing, pulling off your little stunt against Naruto back there but then again…" Sasuke paused, lifting his lightning coated hand as he approached her, the lightning striking his hair casting shadows on his face that only highlighted his cruel, crimson eyes. "… you always were too stupid for your own good."

He stabbed his hand forward, tearing into her torso and into her heart with cold ease.

The young kunoichi, apprentice to the Godaime Hokage and promising medic-nin, stared into his eyes and, in her final moments, the rage in her eyes dissipated to be replaced by an emotion that enraged the Uchiha to no end.

Pity.

The weak, whiny girl whose countenance he had despised, _pitied_ _ **him**_!

He snarled in rage and pumped a bit more chakra into his technique to end her miserable existence and he took a twisted pleasure in watching her once glittering green eyes dim to lifeless orbs.

Then, his world erupted in flames.

Were it not for the his Sharingan, which caught the incredibly swift flight of the tagged kunai that suddenly appeared between them, Sasuke would have met a fiery end right there. Even then, he had barely made it a foot away from her when it detonated, the force of the explosion flinging him away like a discarded rag, the heat searing his back.

It was painful, no doubt, but he had been intimately acquainted with pain over the past few years and he had learned to silence his screaming nerves in order to focus. As such, he retained the presence of mind to twist his body such that his feet struck the ground first before he dug his sword in as well, the grating resistance between rock, metal and chakra-reinforced sandals doing enough to bring him to a halt.

Crimson eyes blazing, the Uchiha glared into the billowing smoke cloud from ground zero of the explosion. His ears -honed to cat-like keenness over the course of his training- picked up a quiet murmur, the shuffle of feet and the rustling of clothes: it sounded like someone had arrived, whispered to a second person before being passed something in return.

A cold smirk graced his lips as he stood in a battle ready stance. "Is that you, Naruto?"

"You bastard…" The voice of his old rival… the murderous _rage_ he heard in that voice… It set Sasuke's body _humming_ in anticipation. "You utter bastard!"

‹‹‡››

It had been laughably easy for the clone of Konoha's Prankster King to make it past the shoddy chunin squad that patrolled the grounds his target and now, not even five minutes after making up his mind, said clone quietly strolled down the drafty hallways of a once prominent clan.

Contrary to popular opinion, Konohagaure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, was _not_ built on the singular alliance of the Senju and Uchiha clans. If that had been the case, no matter how powerful the two were, they would have been overwhelmed by the temporary alliance of their enemies; one only had to look to the Uzumaki to find evidence of _that_ fact. Instead, the Senju and Uchiha were the heads of their own allied power bases that came together to form the First Hidden Village. On the Uchiha's side were the Yamanaka, Aburame and Akado clans while the Senju had the Akimichi, Kurama and Kurosaki clans with the Uzumaki and Hyuga being the neutral parties to oversee the deliberations.

Since then, there had been additions (such as the Nara, Inuzuka and Hyuga clans) and subtractions (the Akado and Kurosaki being just two) but most of the initial group remained, albeit in obscurity for some.

During the investigation into the gradual culling of the Senju clan, the clone had stumbled upon a unique set of documents that detailed an interaction between an elite jonin of the Village and a member of one of said 'obscurely living' clans.

'Now, I wonder…'

"Who are you?"

The clone froze mid step, not daring to turn his head for so much as a second, waiting to see if he was mistaken.

"I can see you."

That voice… though she sounded so much more frail than when they had met all those years ago yet he was dead certain that he knew precisely who had spoken.

"If you don't tell me what you're doing here I'll call the ANBU."

"Wait." A part of himself -a part born from the Boss- desperately hoped his mind was playing tricks on him. He hoped -no, he _prayed_ \- that he was wrong and this wouldn't be added to yet another of the Sandaime's lies. In the end, a part of him broke when he saw the frail slip of a woman that stood behind him, her breath coming in short gasps and her weight leaning quite heavily on the cane that she clutched in her right hand.

"Yakumo-chan…"

‹‹‡››

In another sector of Konoha, three women -well, three female _beings-_ sat around a floating, amorphous shadow-orb, staring intently at the images within until one of them abruptly stood up and marched away.

Yuki and Erza exchanged glances before the redhead sighed and rose to her feet.

"Keep an eye on the battle and alert us of any changes but if the pink haired bitch attempts anything, you have my permission to go in there and rip her heart out." Erza ordered coldly, sparing a moment to nod at the Shadow Vixen's vengeful grin, and immediately headed up to the roof of the apartment complex. As expected, the Queen of Succubi stood there, arms folded beneath her bust as she stared at the most prominent monument in the Village and, for a few seconds, Erza found herself captivated by her friend's beauty.

Clad in a pair of blue, thigh length boy-shorts and a plain white tee shirt that was tied off just before her mid-riff Mirajane cut a stunning image of casual beauty that few in Makai had ever seen before.

"Enjoying the view?"

The Knightwalker snorted at the comment as she walked up to stand beside her friend-slash-rival. "You'd think that wouldn't you?"

"That's not a denial, Knightwalker-chan." Erza slanted an arched stare at the white-haired beauty but said nothing. "Do you remember Natsu-kun?"

The redhead couldn't hold back the scoff that came at the thought of the young man in question. Of course she remembered him; how could she not? The hotheaded General of the Monkey King's armies was a character few could ever forget with his ridiculously boisterous nature and flashy moves and Mira damned well knew it. "What about that pink-haired shitstain?"

"He asked me to marry him."

Erza blinked once, twice and then chuckled as if the very _idea_ was little more than a ludicrous dream. "I'm guessing you-"

"I was seriously considering it."

Now _that_ was a stunner: Erza was dead certain Mira saw the pink haired brat as little more than an annoying acquaintance regardless of his physical might or social standing and so hearing that her friend had even _thought_ about it, to say nothing of giving it _serious consideration_ was… well, it certainly begged to be questioned.

Mira knew what her friend wanted well before it was voiced. "Unlike the rest of Kyubi-sama's guardians, I always knew that a victory for our Queen would have a devastating impact on my people, Zalhim's actions certainly made that outcome absolute. And while I can't thank you, Grayfia-sama, Sona and everyone else enough for everything you've done to help me stabilize my kingdom, the fact remains that there's still this faint undercurrent of reticence among some of the other Regents: they can't trust me." Erza's protests were silenced by a raised hand. "You know it's true, Erza; you've often wondered why I haven't taken in any of the thousands of suitors I've had over the past few decades and Sona's jokingly said that I'd be the first Queen to hit a century without a partner but the thing is… I never expected to have a spouse."

"I don't believe that." The response was quick, automatic even, and was born from centuries of memories. "You've always wanted desired a soul mate, Mira. Remember when we travelled to the Fairy Queen's Court? You wouldn't shut up about how beautiful it was and how you couldn't wait to take in its majestic beauty with your mate by your side-"

"Then why the hell did you have to send him off on what could easily be his last mission?!" Erza nearly stumbled back at the force of her friend's cry and a tiny part of her mind was thankful that Naruto's privacy seals encapsulated the whole building otherwise more than half of Konoha would have heard that cry. All such thoughts faded, however, when she saw the dim, tinkling starlight reflected in the tears that pooled in her friend's eyes.

"Mira- what-"

"I'd given up on finding someone who could love me for _me_ , someone who didn't see me as a reminder of a war time enemy and, when I'd finally found him, _you of all people_ _ **asked him to leave!**_ "

Erza struggled to put the pieces together, so rattled was she, but she kept at it until the pieces clicked into a recognizable shape. "You're in love with him?!"

" _What did you_ _ **think**_ _?!_ " Mira's latest cry was orders of magnitude above the last yet all the Knightwalker could do was stand and stare. "You think I'd care that much about any random _human_? Newsflash you idiot: they're walking batteries to me and the easily replaceable ones at that! I've been feeding off them since I was his age! I didn't want the father of my unborn child -my soul mate!- walking to his death but **you** just _had_ to let him go!"

"I- I didn't-" Erza stumbled over her words, trying to figure out what to say when Mira collapsed into her side, bringing them both to the ground. The white haired Queen's body shook with her sobs and Erza could only hold on to her.

"He has to survive this Erza… I can't imagine if he doesn't come back…"

‹‹‡››

"You utter bastard!" Like an arrow loosed from a bow, Naruto shot out of the smoke at Sasuke, his blue eyes narrowed into slits that radiated cold fury. The Uchiha's new appearance registered as less than a blip in his mind as he closed the distance between the two of them in an instant, the kunai in both hands little more than dull streaks as they struck out only to be met by the unyielding steel of Sasuke's blade.

"You seem oddly incensed." The Uchiha smirked as they struggled against each other. "Did I do something wrong?"

"Fuck you!" Naruto growled as he disengaged from the clash for a second before diving back in and starting a furious exchange with his former teammate. They crossed blades multiple times each second, exchanging ripostes, parries, slashes and stabs as they sought the crucial gap in each other's defence.

Sasuke's style was as sleek, precise and elegant as could be expected, his form an ever moving blur as he fought. Naruto, on the other hand, was less controlled in his motions yet no less deadly: his style seemed to leave a million holes in his guard as he charged in yet he maintained such an absolute degree of awareness that every attempt Sasuke made to exploit any such 'opening' was countered viciously.

'He's countering the predictive abilities of the Sharingan by leaving openings I _have_ to take and leading this fight as he chooses.' Sasuke thought as he was forced on the defensive after taking yet another 'opening.' 'It's an insane style and one only you would think of using. However…' Tracking the motion of an incoming kunai, the Uchiha disregarded the 'opening' Naruto had left to his solar plexus and stabbed right at Naruto's eye, forcing the blond to parry and, in doing so, return to a defensive position. "I've figured you out!"

The fight changed then as Sasuke took the lead in the battle, disregarding Naruto's blatant 'openings' to _force_ new openings of his own creation as he hammered away at the blond's guard. His blade was like greased lightning as it struck out at Naruto and, upon spotting an opportunity, he struck, channeling lightning chakra through his sword the instant before it clashed with Naruto's kunai.

He was expecting the blond to freeze upon being electrocuted, giving him the chance to end the fight then. He was **not,** however, expecting to be sent flying in an ungainly heap by a kick to the ribs which was, of course, what he received.

It took him less than a second to twist himself into a position to recover and set himself into a guarded stance in preparation for further attacks though his lungs burned from the effort breathing required.

There was none coming, though, not yet. Instead, Naruto stared at him with emotionless eyes.

"You know, when Sakura told me to come at you with everything in me, I didn't agree with her. I felt like I should give you a chance. Maybe you weren't so far gone. Maybe she was wrong and you'd see something of the team we were-"

"The Dead Last, the Fan Girl and the Rookie." Sasuke scoffed. "You never thought there was something wrong with that pairing?"

"You mean the fact that your head was always up your ass?"

"You were always there to spur me onward. My very own cheer squad."

Naruto's glare grew even colder as his rage spiked. "So, even with most of Konoha backing you and desiring your return, you're too blinded by your desire for vengeance to realize what you have to gain by coming back."

"There's nothing to gain in that naive village."

"The Village that trained some of the most powerful shinobi in our world?" Naruto scoffed as he sealed both kunai and prepared to kick off their next bout. "You left that for a rejected traitor who -even with assistance- could barely defeat an old man _decades_ past his prime? You really are an idiotic moron." The blond's icy glare cracked just a bit as he shook his head in pity. "And for what? The Uchiha name?"

A black scowl settled on Sasuke's face at his words and he all but snarled at his former teammate. "Don't you _dare_ speak of my **family**!"  
"Why shouldn't I? Are you that unwilling to listen to reason?" Naruto asked with an arched brow. "Your family was murdered by your brother and, in the aftermath of that, he asks you to give in to your hatred and hunt him down and you're doing exactly as he asked-"

"Katon: Gokakyu!" A huge fireball flashed across the distance between them in mere seconds, sending the air boiling as it charged toward the target of his ire. Three more fireballs fired in quick succession, targeted at each location he expected his old teammate to dodge toward while he prepared a brace of shuriken for when Naruto showed up. Even then, however, he was _stunned_ when the fireballs in a most direct path to him suddenly split in two with either half destabilizing in a burst of flames. Through the flames came Naruto, ignoring the fireballs to his left and right as he bore down on the Uchiha, embers from the flames around him being snuffed out by the racing winds.

The tomoe in Sasuke's sharingan spun with an unholy fury as he leaped back, tossing the shuriken in his hands at his rival in such a pattern that Naruto would _have_ to dodge only to see the blond swing one of his hands forward in a wide arc that sent a milky-white distortion of air slicing through every shuriken headed his way.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in thought as he noticed the pair of swords in Naruto's hands -a _daisho_ set, he thought to himself- and his mind instantly cataloged everything he had seen while comparing it to all he knew of his former teammate: 'Those swords… that was a wind blade he just used to cut through the shuriken just now and, considering the way the flames of the fireballs split apart before destabilizing, it stands to reason that he must have sliced through them as well. Tch, the idiot's either a wind user or his swords have seals for channeling wind chakra.'

It was an annoying revelation as it meant that his lightning techniques would be nullified by the blond's wind and, while his fire _should_ have the elemental advantage, experience battling Orochimaru had taught him a little known secret: wind _could_ cut through fire, it just required a degree of finesse that few ever gained.

'And the idiot just _happens_ to have gained that,' he thought with a snarl as he unsheathed his blade and dashed forward to engage in yet another bout of close quarter combat with the blond. A treacherous part of his mind wondered if the blond wasn't on to something after all: if the Village Idiot could gain a Sannin-like degree of mastery over an element within a few years of training perhaps he could find the power to defeat his brother in Konoha if he surrendered? The thought had appeared so suddenly that it broke his focus for a split second.

In the next instant, he was faced with the sight of a daito stabbing forward to pierce his throat.

" _B_ _akuhatsu-on Shuryudan_ "

The Sharingan -the same eyes that had just predicted his death- was the only thing that let him see it: a small, distorted sphere of air slammed into Naruto's side, just beneath his outstretched arm and unleashed a deafening blast of sound that -for the first time since the fight had begun- sent the blond flying.

His relief at being alive was violently squashed beneath his rage at needing to be rescued and he immediately leveled a vicious glare at the now revealed form of Tayuya. "What the hell-"

"Yeah, that's the thank you I expected from saving your skinny ass from being fucking skewered." The redhead snarled as she landed beside him, eyes focused on the unmoving form she had just blasted into the distance. "Get it into your fucking skull, moron: I'm **not** your subordinate or some such shit, I'm Orochimaru's bloody insurance policy over your bitch-ass life. You die, I get tortured till death becomes a distant dream so you're stuck with me until we kill you ex-boyfriend over- **fuck!** " Spotting a twisting blur shooting right at him, she slammed her fist into the ground, calling upon the implanted Kaguya genes in her to create a wall of bone to take the attack. "Get your head in the game asswipe! He's coming!"

Right on cue, the earth beneath her feet sucked her feet in up to the ankle just as he appeared in a swirl of leaves and lashed out with a brutal split kick that connected to both of them.

It was a decent tactic, Tayuya admitted (to herself, of course. She'd **die** before ever actually complimenting tree-hugger scum): by preventing her legs from moving just before kicking her, he would force her body to bend in such a manner that her legs would simply snap like twigs. Unfortunately for him, and as much as she despised it, she had been augmented by three of the most brilliant minds in the known world: with her implanted Kaguya genes, it would take significantly greater force to even _stress_ her skeletal system.

As such, she brought her free hand to bear and, channeling some of Jirobou's immense strength, drove a fist right through his torso.

The blond impaled on her fist exploded violently, unleashing a storm of electricity that lit up her nerves.

At the same time, Sasuke was being pushed back by a pair of blonds whose movements were in such perfect sync that even with his Sharingan working overtime, he was hard pressed to simply stay ahead of their flashing blades.

Tayuya was left gasping desperately as the electric storm finally died down, her limbs twitching as her muscles spasmed and a sudden, savage thirst racked her body. It had taken all of her training to stay conscious through the unexpected attack but, as she suffered through its aftermath, a fury born of desperate fear pervaded her mind: she had suffered the aftermath of failing Orochimaru once before and that was a fate she swore to **never** go through again.

Drawing upon Kidomaru's enhanced senses, she scanned her environs and noted the position of a chakra signature that matched that of the blonds Sasuke was currently locked in battle with. Guessing that she must have found the original, she leaped into the air, shattering the earth that had held her feet with her strength and bore down on the blond bastard.

Naruto had spotted her the instant she jumped and had already cast a swift Underworld Swamp on the spot he expected her to land before leaping back himself, his fingers flying through the seals for a Vacuum Wave to finish her off when his senses screamed at him to **move!** He was just a _fraction_ of a second too slow to react, however, and he felt a tremendous force slam into his stomach, sending him flying. Even with his immense pain tolerance, it still cost him a few moments to get his bearing and move to steady himself yet, just as he began to move to control his sudden flight, he was punted aside again, pain flaring up from his left arm this time. Once again, he tried to beat back the pain to steady himself only to be hit a _third_ time!

'Genjutsu!' He choked out as he crashed into the ground, his nerves screaming. 'But… how?!'

He had ensured that he never had direct eye-contact with Sasuke throughout their fight and he was dead certain that the redheaded kunoichi hadn't cast one either. 'So when- Wait!' His mind swiftly played back a memory of Shikamaru talking about the redheaded girl that he had fought during the Retrieval mission.

' _She uses sound to propagate her genjutsu; it was so troublesome to deal with her…'_

'That first attack was a pretty much a sound grenade!' He thought as lifted a hand to block a kick only to feel a fist sheathe itself in his sternum. 'She must have gotten some of her chakra into me then!'

With that in mind, the blond tapped into his reserves of biju chakra, allowing the extremely potent power to scour his system clean of any foreign chakra. It worked like a charm and he was able to sway beneath the sword slash that would have separated his head from his shoulders while countering with a vicious uppercut of his own. Knowing that the threat of her sound-based genjutsu was too great to be ignored, Naruto decided to keep the biju chakra flowing through his system, knowing that it would be enough to counter her illusions, before blasting forward to engage in melee combat with the two.

Fists, feet, elbows, knees and sword strikes were exchanged at a furious pace as Sasuke and Tayuya battled to keep Naruto on the defensive. They were only partially successful- the blond kept using their own attacks against them, diverting Sasuke's chokuto into the path of Tayuya's punch or pushing aside the golden spear she wielded in such a way that it tripped the Uchiha up- but they made sure to cover each other whenever he attacked and they worked to ensure that every strike counted such that, by the time they broke off from the first exchange, it was only Naruto's rapid regenerative abilities that kept him in the fight.

"We need to finish this now." Tayuya urged as they watched the blond's skin swiftly stitch itself back together again. "The rest of the fucking tree-hugger squad are likely on their bloody way now."

Sasuke, loathe as he was to even think about it, had to agree. "Stage Two. Now."

Tayuya grimaced upon hearing his words. "You had to _fucking_ ask, didn't you dipshit?"

Instantly, their aura's changed as they tapped into the full power of the Cursed Seal, their chakra signatures warping in violent ways as their bodies changed.

Twelve feet away, Naruto stared at their obscene forms with coldly dispassionate eyes. Sasuke's Stage Two form hadn't changed significantly since their last battle but Tayuya's was a grotesque chimera: twin horns sprouted from her head, chin and spine while her skin darkened to an almost coal-like color. Her arms tripled in size and had her bending over like a simian before her lower body bulged and twisted until it resembled that of a spider, complete with four arachnid legs. "Well, aren't you two the pair."

"Go to hell!" Tayuya snarled as she charged forward, revealing the presence of fangs in her mouth. She only made it a couple of steps, however, before slamming into an invisible barrier. "What the fuck-?!"

Naruto turned his cold gaze onto his former teammate. "You want to try too?" Sasuke's response was to attempt to fly backward only to meet the same fate as the redhead. "Fuinjutsu: Norowareta Tobichi. You won't be getting out of there while you've got tainted chakra flowing through your veins." It was for this very reason that he had limited his usage of clones throughout the fight: the very instant he had disrupted the killing blow Sasuke had aimed at Sakura, he had created a quartet of clones to sketch the outer boundaries of the Cursed Enclave seal in anticipation of Sasuke's eventual attempt to power himself up.

Sasuke, of course, figured out the loop in Naruto's words and swiftly tried to cut off the flow of chakra from the Cursed Seal.

The key word: _tried._

"I'm guessing you're just discovering that you can't reverse the effects of the Cursed Seal, yeah?" Naruto's smirk was chillingly predatory. "I'm guessing you still haven't figured it out then, Sasuke." His fingers formed the half-tiger seal and he channeled his chakra to release specific pulses. A second later, Sasuke and Tayuya were writhing in utter agony as he activated the second phase of his seal. "Fuinjutsu: Noroi no Kyozetsu. No, Sasuke. I'm _**DONE playing around.**_ "

Sasuke was the first to scream as the Curse Rejection hit its peak with Tayuya a few seconds behind him. The Curse Rejection seal was a particularly nasty creation of his that forcibly ripped the active tainted chakra in a person away from their regular chakra. He had intended to create something to remove the Cursed Seal from its victims but the problem with this seal was that it only targeted the active chakra in the victim's system -painfully separating and then destroying the tainted chakra- without doing anything to the base seal where the foreign chakra originated from.

Incensed as he was at the incredibly stupid stunt she had pulled, the instant he saw that Sasuke really **was** going to kill Sakura, he knew _exactly_ how he wanted to end the fight.

All things had to come to an end, though, even the screams of traitors, and when the seal detected no further traces of the Cursed Seal's chakra, it deactivated itself and one of its victims ungracefully slumped to the ground.

Sasuke was still standing, supported more by his pride than anything else.

"I'm surprised to see you on your feet." Naruto commented as he pulled out two Prisoner Tags. "I'd thought for sure that would have knocked you out."

"If… if that's all you've got, Dobe," Sasuke gasped as he subtly channeled the dredges of his chakra into a final attack, "then you will never catch up to me! Chidori Eiso!"

Naruto simply arched an eyebrow at the pitiful sparks that shot out of his old teammate's outstretched hand. The technique -a projected Chidori from what he could acrertain, between the name and the failed attempt- barely crossed a few inches before fizzling out. "You could have been so much more if you hadn't let your hate consume you, moron." Handing the tags over to a pair of clones, he stood back and watched them tag the two criminals and prep them for transfer back to Konoha.

At that moment, a frazzled -but mostly healed- Sakura walked up to him.

"That was a-"

"Don't you even _start_ Haruno."

More than even the tone -which was more commanding than Tsunade's at her most annoyed- it was the fact that Naruto had called her by her surname -for the first time _ever_ \- that shut her up. "What the hell was **that**?!"

She wanted to explain, she really did; she wanted to let him know that she just wanted to protect him. He was hesitant to use the power of his biju, something she knew wouldn't hold Sasuke back if the tables had been turned, and she didn't want him to go into the fight with his mind stuck thinking of Sasuke as their old teammate. She wanted to say all that but Naruto didn't give her the chance.

"You know, I don't get it. First you go off on some reminiscing bullshit line about how I need to go all out against Sasuke and I can't hold back and then you turn and _incapacitate_ me?! Are you so-"

"I was trying to help you!" She screamed at him, unable to take his ire any longer. " _You_ weren't ready to take Sasuke on, not with your 'holding back' mindset! You needed to see that Sasuke would do _anything_ to ascertain to himself that he had the power needed to take down Itachi!"

"You think I didn't knew that?!" Naruto was was in her face now, practically roaring in fury at her. "You think this entire fight was pulled together on a whim?! I've spent the past three years doing little more than _**training**_ Sakura! What did you think was at the forefront of my mind?! The Akatsuki? No, like a fucking moron, all I thought off was keeping my promise to _you_! I spent night after night after night thinking up plans, building contingencies to make sure that I fulfilled my promise to you and didn't kill him and -then out of nowhere!- you ask me to just give up and kill him! You know my nindo; you know that I don't give up and I _don't ever break a promise_ and you still did that!"

"I asked for that promise when I was still stupid!" Sakura yelled back furiously, fighting back tears. "I wanted to **help**! Sasuke hasn't ever seen us as a team; we're only stepping stones to him and I will not lose a friend to one of the biggest mistakes I ever made!"

"And you thought I'd be happy to watch him _kill you_?!" Naruto's response was as much out of befuddlement as it was out of rage. "You damned near got yourself killed and don't even get me started on the mission-"

"This is more than some stupid mission!"

That did it. Try as he might, he just couldn't understand her thought processes and he was beginning to understand that they simply couldn't continue this conversation as it were; not when their emotions were running so high. And so, frustrated by his teammate and the stagnancy of their argument, he turned away. "We're done here Haruno. You're in-" Suddenly, he froze, drawing Sakura's attention.

He couldn't have known about her actions, though; he was deep within his mind, in the portion of his mind that represented the seal and he was stunned by what he saw.

Kyubi was desperately throwing herself against the reinforced barrier of the seal, having reverted into her full biju form in a desperate bid to get his attention.

"Kyubi! Kyubi, I'm here what is it?!" It took a few minutes to get her attention, such was the desperation of the Queen of Makai.

"Matatabi! You need to find her!"

"Find… find who?!"

"Matatabi! The Nibi! Two Tails!" Kyubi's words were short, urgent and it was all Naruto could do to not race off immediately.

"Where? Kyubi where do I need to go?"

"Kumo! Head toward Kumo! I've synchronized… chakra to hers… just follow the tug… my chakra in you!" The reinforced seals tightened again, essentially choking the great Kitsune who switched back to her more human form. "Please…"

Naruto desperately dived forward and was able to get his hand through the barrier to caress her cheek. "I'll get you out Kyubi, you hear me? I'll save your friend and get you out of here!"

"Not friend… Sister…"

That was the last thing he heard before being forced out of the seal.

The instant he regained full consciousness, he burst into a blur of motion, instantly summoning all three of his otherworldly allies. "Yuki! You're with Sakura; ensure that those prisoners get back to Konoha. The instant they're there, shadow-port right back to my location! Sakura, tell Baa-chan I'm in Kumo trying to save the Nibi jinchuuriki! Erza, Mira! You're with me! Let's go!"

Without further ado, the blond took off at top speed, with Erza in her Flight Armor and Mira donning Halphas right on his heels.

‹‹‡››

 _ **Done!**_

 _ **I hope I did a decent job explaining Sakura's motives for the turn in the last chapter: she wasn't trying to simply act like a bitch or anything, she just wanted to help by taking Sasuke on herself. In her mind, because Naruto was reticent on simply ripping Sasuke in half, she decided that he wasn't ready to do the needful and so she took matters into her own hands. This was a canon based decision on my part (remember that badly told lie in the snowy peaks of the Land of Iron?) because Sakura maintains a somewhat naive and selfish outlook on the shinobi world (or at least team seven) in up to -and even during the War arc in- canon. Here, I'm trying to get her out of that mindset (Hence Tsunade's behind-the-scenes actions to get Sakura to think clearly) but I don't want to do so too quickly hence this: Sakura has a truly decent objective in mind with pure motives but her execution is still quite childish and selfish.**_

 _ **On Sakura v Sasuke: Sakura's skillset simply loses horribly to Sasuke in pretty much any given scenario. She's pretty much all taijutsu and that's just begging to be exploited. She has the strength of Lee but nowhere near sufficient speed to trouble Sasuke so…**_

 _ **On Naruto v Sasuke (and Tayuya) [3k+ words dedicated to that fight there]: Sasuke was outplayed by Naruto. Simple. Even with the addition of Tayuya (which was foreshadowed in the last chapter) Naruto simply had too many contingencies to deal with them. For those expecting a flashy ninjutsu battle: Naruto knows Sasuke's got an active pair of Sharingan. Why the hell would he opt for a battle plan that adds to his enemy's arsenal? Naruto stuck with kenjutsu and taijutsu because his enhancements allowed him to do stuff Sasuke wouldn't dare.**_

 _ **On Mira: In the OG Contract (by YagamiNguyen), Mira did get pregnant. Even gave birth. However, this being a more plot oriented fic, I'm hoping to show a few things through this subplot. First off: why the hell does the Queen of Succubi not have a mate?! That ties into my revamped idea for certain things and I hope you'll all stick around to find out.**_

 _ **What else?**_

 _ **Oh, Naruto's Investigator!Clone is still mucking about and now he's found a certain somebody…**_

 _ **Wonder how that'll turn out.**_

 _ **Anyhow, that's it for now. Hope you enjoyed this. Please. PLEASE give me feedback.**_

 _ **Again: MrLightYagami who pointed out the character tags thing: THANK YOU!**_

 _ **Now, a few review responses:**_

 _ **RFDN: Naruto was punished for not bringing the situation with his summons to the right officer [Nara Shikaku], not for absolutely keeping quiet. Sure, Jiraiya knew but there is still a chain of command and protocol that must be followed. Ignore all the fanon; Jiraiya does NOT rank higher than Shikaku in the Village. He may be the Spymaster, granting him direct access to the upper echelons of the Village but he doesn't outrank the jonin commander who, should the situation call for it, can order him around.**_

 _ **Re Lovely Lover: Hinata wasn't brought up as never ridiculing Naruto because, as far as Kyubi [and myself] was concerned, she was worse. She claims to 'love' him and all but she never once stood up for him or even just spoke to him. In the eyes of a child who is already being ignored by the rest of the world, her 'shyness' would count as ignorance. Second: Ugh, NO! Fun as in 'I'm going to mentally fuck you over until you see the world as I want you to' not fun as in 'let's roll in the sack.' Thanks for the error there, I'll be sure to head back and clear that up. Haven't gotten around to deciding on the clone-gangbang thing. I'm thinking 'no' personally unless the character in the story specifically requests for it (say Mira wants a throw back to some of her glory days or something). The clones will be used to help him be in multiple places at once, though, to catch up on his girls' lives or to stay with the kids or whatever [you know, the same thing Kishimoto completely dropped the ball on, turning the 'one man army' into the worst dad in history]. PS: don't hate on the original story. It was simply more smut oriented hence the heavy doses of sex.**_

 _ **Techniques:**_

 _ **Katon: Gokakyu: Fire Style Grand Fireball**_

 _ **Bakuhatsu**_ ** _-on Shuryudan: Explosive Sound Grenade_**

 ** _Norowareta Tobichi- Cursed Enclave_**

 ** _Noroi no Kyozetsu-Curse Rejection_**


	39. Fissures: Chapter 38

**The Contract**

 _ **[My Muse is using this opportunity to call on our creative license to borrow a certain quote and use it as the fic desires. You'll know when you see it. XD ]**_

 **Chapter 38**

 _ **Valley Of The End…**_

As Sakura watched Naruto take off into the distance, supported by his summons, she wondered how everything had gone so horribly _wrong_.

How had she gone from wanting to spare her teammate -her _friend_ \- from a fated death to being the _bad guy_?

' **You're regressing, that's why.'**

She stiffened, shook her head and marched off to perform rudimentary checks on the two captives -she had to ensure that they survived the march back to Konoha after all- while doing her best to ignore the voice in her head.

' **You can try to ignore me but you know precisely how** _ **that'll**_ **turn out.'**

The voice was right; even as she related how her actions were standard field procedure for valuable captives to yet _another_ of Naruto's strange female summons, Sakura knew that it was right: year after year of feigning ignorance had done nothing more than amuse her inner self yet, rather than seek professional help, she had kept it to herself. After all, she rationalized, it acted as a gatekeeper to her mind while also helping to enhance her ability to recall details to an obscene degree.

' **Aww… I knew you loved me…'**

"She's clear to go." Sakura stated to the clearly impatient Yuki before moving over to check up on Sasuke. "Soon as I'm done here, we'll head out."

' **Ignore me all you want, Sis, you know I'm right about your regression.'** Her inner self jeered in a mockingly childish tone. **'Oh! You've got mail!'**

Sakura shook her head and turned to Yuki. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

The female summon gritted her teeth in obvious annoyance. "I want to know how fast you are. Naruto-sama ordered me to ensure that you arrive in the Village safely but I need to get back to him so…" The statement was left open-ended but the implication was clear: how much of a delay would she constitute?

"It took Naruto and I just under two hours to get here and I'm essentially unharmed-"

"No shit." The summons' words were low, mumbled, but Sakura clearly heard it.

Sakura had a sharp, scathing retort on the tip of her tongue before it was swallowed up by a surge of guilt.

' **Of course you're guilty; you slipped back into your old childish ways. I mean, that little stunt you pulled on Naruto?** _ **Geez**_ **that was stupid. There must have been like a thousand ways you could have convinced him to go into the fight with a focused mind and you chose the** _ **one**_ _ **method**_ **that had you looking like a total heel! Now he probably thinks you have absolutely no faith in him or his abilities -and thanks to our 'Sasuke-kun is better than you ever could be baka!' phase, there's already enough reason for him to believe** _ **that**_ **!'**

The pink haired kunoichi drew in a shaky breath and pulled her hands off Sasuke. "He'll survive the journey. I'll just seal them into a prisoner transfer scroll and we can go."

"Good." Sakura felt the summons' cold eyes on her as she moved to perform the sealing and she was unsurprised when, after the redhead had been sealed away, she was asked: "You will be delivering the mission report on Naruto-sama's behalf yes?"

Her heart skipped a beat upon hearing that, though she maintained sufficient presence of mind to utter a calm, "Of course." The weight of her actions descended on her right then, throwing her thoughts into disarray while her inner self burst into hysterical laughter.

' **Yeah, you should have thought about the ramifications of attacking a ranking officer** _ **before**_ **acting on your impulses huh, Sis?'**

Strapping both scrolls to her thigh pouches the pink haired kunoichi turned to Yuki. "Let's go."

They took off without a word, silver haired vixen staying just a few feet behind the kunoichi, her eyes narrowed as she came to a decision.

Rather than join her master as he had ordered, she would stick with the pink haired wench during the debriefing in Konoha. With her master gone, she was uncertain how things would proceed and she simply didn't trust the girl to not lie. Not after her actions earlier in the night…

‹‹‡››

While Sakura and Yuki headed back to Konoha, the Mirajane and Erza were untraceable blurs as they raced desperately toward the Nibi with the Knightwalker carrying her beloved Summoner on her back as they moved.

It hadn't taken them long to realize that, fast as Naruto was, he simply wouldn't be able to match up to the two women in speed; Mira's Halphas form allowed her to enhance her speed with raw lightning while Erza could stack the tremendous speed boost of the Silfarion on top of her Flight Armor*. As such, he had opted to be carried by either of them while he gave the directions. It was a logical decision, one that he easily made without hesitation. After all, this was a jinchuuriki they were out to save; one of an extreme minority that understood what it was like to be pushed to the brink of sanity by human prejudices and hatred. Furthermore…

' _Not friend… Sister…'_

Kyubi herself had referred to the Nibi -' _Matatabi,'_ he reminded himself- as a _sister_. Having never experienced familial bonds, Naruto desired them more than anything in the world and, presented with the opportunity to preserve such a bond for his lover? He was ready to go to any lengths.

"We're getting close!" He yelled into Erza's ear, knowing that with the wind violently screeching around them, nothing less would suffice. "Five kilometers out, dead ahead!"

Immediately he called it, the redhead began to slow down, though she maintained enough speed that, within a minute, she had shaved the distance down to less than half a kilometer between themselves and their targets.

Naruto's feet touched the ground at the same moment Mira's did, a few stray arcs of lightning dancing over her scaly skin.

"Naruto-sama, they're about five hundred meters away." Erza reported as she expanded her sensory field. "I sense two figures; one with about the same energy reserves as a regular jonin class shinobi while the other's is more than four times as large." A frown knotted her forehead as she focused on something in the distance. "Mira are you seeing this?"

The white haired Succubus had an equally perplexed look on her face, having run a sweep of the area a second after the Knightwalker. "The second man… his energy feels… different. Like he's comprised of five different signatures at once. More than that, each signature is ultra-defined-"

"Like a crystal." Erza continued. "Except… elemental! Each signature is a dedicated elemental signature!"

That brought Naruto up short. "He has _five_ different _**elemental**_ signatures?! Fuck! These Akatsuki bastards just aren't playing around!" He exhaled through clenched teeth as he ran through possible scenarios in his mind. "How about Lady Matatabi's jinchuriki?"

"Her chakra is being drained at an incredible pace. They have her at the halfway mark now and I believe she'll be gone in fifteen minutes." Mira stated.

"Fine. Here's what we'll do…"

‹‹‡››

For the first time in her life, Ni'i Yugito knew what it was like to lose; to try so desperately to achieve a goal yet to fail nonetheless.

She was strapped to the ground with a wriggling mass of black tentacles, body numb thanks to the gaping holes in her shoulders yet her mind was alive with the agonizing pain of having her chakra -no, more than that, her very _life force_ \- being torn out of her.

The pain had sort of… faded though. It was still there; she could certainly feel it but it was distant… like it was happening in the distance and she was free to think. Regrets filled her mind then; from wishing she had developed an actual friendship with some of her fellow shinobi -Samui especially- to missing her chances at love…Surprisingly, however, her biggest regret lay in her staunch decision to not interact with the creature that had been sealed into her from her childhood.

Though the creature - _Matatabi_ , she thought to herself, calling it by name for the first time in her life- had often tried to reason with her, she had always ignored it, seeing it as a power source and nothing more.

'I guess I was wrong in the end…' She thought as her mental faculties finally began to fade. 'I'm sorry… Matatabi…'

The last thing her conscious mind noted was a violent rumble that shook the ground…

‹‹‡››

"Fucking hell! Who the fuck does the little bitch think she is huh?! Son of a fucker, if we didn't have to take them alive, I'd have strung her up by her fucking intestines and skull fucked her with her own foot **before** sacrificing her to Jashin-sama!"

Sitting cross-legged a few feet away from the ranting psychopath, the masked nin known simply as Kakuzu let out a sigh. "Wouldn't that be in violation of your false god's rules?"

"What the fuck is your heathen ass on about now?!"

"I'm just saying; from everything you've forced me to learn about your pointless 'religion' your god doesn't take mutilated sacrifice." Kakuzu rumbled. "That being the case, you couldn't do half the shit you just said without pissing 'Jashin' off."

"Well, what the fuck do you know?" Hidan shot back with a sneer. "The materialistic heathen has actually been listening. Well, for your information-"

"When the hell will this sealing end anyway?" Kakuzu cut in dryly, smirking beneath his mask at the furious look on his 'partner's face. For all his undying ability to talk a person's ear off, the idiot was easy to rile up; simply cut him off mid-religious rant and Mount Hidan was ready to blow its top. And while the former Takigakure shinobi wasn't usually one for mindless chatter, the unexpected boredom of having to sit through the sealing process had pushed him to find a source of amusement. Knowing that it would piss his partner off even more, the masked nin turned his focus onto the chakra rod embedded deeply into the ground. The innocuous looking rod was the focal point of the transference ritual they were performing: while himself and Hidan initiated the chakra draining process through the rod, the rest of the Akatsuki focused their chakra to essentially 'pull' it through a harmonized rod at the base. It was an impressive -and very helpful- trick as it allowed them to perform summons regardless of their location. Still…

'Even pissing the idiot off has gotten boring.'

At that moment, he felt a sudden burst of chakra just outside the cave they were sequestered in. Frowning, he rose to his feet as he focused on sensing the environment outside the cave when the ground at the cave entrance exploded, unleashing a powerful blast of force that threw him into the rear wall of the cave.

Ears ringing, the ex Taki-nin pushed himself out of the rock, trying to decipher what had just happened when he heard the incessant yelling of his partner.

"Oi! Oi, Kakuzu! Get me down from here you fucking bastard!"

The thought of leaving the idiot hanging crossed his mind and, for the umpteenth time, the masked member of the Akatsuki seriously considered abandoning Hidan. Here he was, impaled on a rock wall by a jutting rock, bleeding out horribly. Sure he claimed that he was immortal but Kakuzu knew that the silver haired bastard grew weaker over time in the absence of regular human sustenance. Trapped beneath the earth as they were and having lost a great deal of blood, it was possible that he would die.

'But that would get Leader-sama pissed off.' Kakuzu sighed as he climbed up to help the bastard down. 'And _that_ , as they say, would be the end of that.'

"Son of a bitch! When I find the bitch that threw that fucking spear I'll fucking wear their goddamn skin!"

"Wait. You saw something?"

"Did I fucking stutter you goddamn- ARGH!"

"Don't swear at the guy who's literally going to sew you back up." Kakuzu stated icily. "Now, what did you see?"

"Gah- fuck! It was a spear goddamn it! I didn't see it too clearly between the time it entered my line of vision and when it blew up but I know for certain that it was a fucking spear! Motherfucker…"

The new piece of information solidified Kakuzu's suspicions and, after a cursory glance around, he discovered -as he expected- that the Nibi jinchuriki was gone.

He chuckled at that, a low, grating sound that seemed to rumble out of his chest. "That spike of chakra I detected… was it the spear, I wonder? Or the subterranean rescue party…?

‹‹‡››

While Kakuzu worked to bring down the violently swearing Hidan, five miles away from their cave, stood Erza Scarlet and Mirajane Strauss, awaiting the third of their little party. Where the Knightwalker stood still and silent, an ever watching sentinel, the Succubus paced endlessly, utilizing every form of meditation she could to keep her mind from wandering into some truly dark areas revolving around the father of her unborn child.

Naruto's plan had been simple: Erza, using the _Saint Spear's_ _ **Explosion**_ form, would unleash a powerful explosion at the cave entrance as a distraction while Mira sealed the cave by bringing down the entrance. At the moment of Erza's attack, though, Naruto, who would sneak into the cave using the _Underground Fish Projection_ technique, would pop up, grab the Jinchuriki and dive back out. Simple.

 _In theory._

Mira _knew_ war, though, and she had learned the First Rule of Battle* the hard way; the only reason he had agreed to his idea in the first place was that every suggestion she had thrown up had been countered too well for her to argue. Now, however, her mind was under assault from a multitude of dark thoughts of how her beloved wouldn't survive the night.

So entrenched was she in her thoughts that she didn't notice when the ground beside her bulged until it split open with a sharp 'CRACK!' and the very object of her worries walked out, the unconscious form of the Nibi jinchuriki in his arms.

"Sorry it took so long to get back." He apologized to his partners. "I decided to maintain an even pace with less chakra outage to better conceal my exit."

"Not a problem, Naruto-sama." Erza answered, covering for her fellow Guardian who was struggling to keep her emotions in check. "How is she?" The question was an excellent form of deflection by the redheaded warrior who was now looking over the Jinchuriki.

"I'm not too certain." Naruto admitted as he stared down at the raven-haired young woman* in his arms. She was pale -deathly so, in fact- and her skin was cold yet clammy but he had checked her pulse while he travelled and had confirmed that her heartbeat, while faint, was steady. "Her breathing's shallow and she's a bit cold to the touch but her reserves are above the critical level so she's got a strong chance of survival."

"Not- not if we stand out here she doesn't." Mira interjected, covering the slight hitch in her breath with a shallow cough. "We need to find a place to tend to her -at least until she wakes up."

"We'll need to be with her a lot longer than that." Naruto admitted, though he understood what she meant. "Any suggestions? We can't attempt to get into Kumo, not while they're likely on red alert for a missing jinchuriki anyway."

"You sure as hell can't." A familiar voice said, prompting all three to turn around in shock.

There, leaning on a tree a few feet away from them, stood the smirking form of one self-proclaimed 'Gallant' Toad Sage.

"Sup kid? How's tricks?" Jiraiya's grin was the very definition of 'shit eating'.

"What are you doing here, old Pervert?" Erza asked, her words lacking much heat. She had long since come to accept the fact that Jiraiya's perversion was simply a facet of his character and, while she didn't necessarily like it, she had gotten past it.

"Aww, is Little Missy Prissy warming up to me?" He leered salaciously as he stared at her exposed cleavage, practically drooling. "I can tell you how to- FUCK! OW!"

'Well, I've _mostly_ gotten past it,' she amended to herself as she watched the idiotic old man hop on a foot while nursing the toes of the other -toes she had nearly crushed. "Don't push your luck."

Naruto, bless his soul, simply sighed at the byplay between the two, knowing that it had become something of a greeting rite between them, and turned to the Sage. "Not that I don't miss the laughs you _always_ bring about, old man, but I've got an unconscious jinchuriki on my hands, I'm practically sitting in front of Kumo's gates right now and Danzō warned me, among other things, to not kick off World War Four while I'm training under him so…"

"Chill the fuck out kiddo, sheesh!" Jiraiya rolled his eyes as he stopped hopping about, though he winced as the struck foot touched the ground. "Motherfucker… your damned girlfriend hits even _worse_ than Tsunade, if you can believe that." His words may have sounded sulky but, much like Erza's, they were a simple veneer. "Yo Mira! Why're you hanging back there?"

"You're around." The white haired beauty shrugged casually hiding her emotions skillfully, as if stating a well-known fact. "I'm not ready to get infected by old man sleaze."

"Well fuck you too." He replied with a good-natured grin. "So, I'm guessing y'all need a hideout?"

"Give the man a prize for stating the obvious." Erza replied snarkily.

"Seriously, Jiraiya. Do you have something for us or not?" Naruto interjected, all traces of humor gone from his tone. "Kumo forces will swarm this area sooner than later and I don't want to be here when that happens."

Knowing that his godson was right, the Toad Sage got serious. "I was checking up on some informants when I got my ass pulled back to Myoboku by Ma and Pa. Apparently, O-Gama-Sennin had asked for my presence specifically. When I showed up, he told me that you were about to take on a mission in a dangerous location and that I was to guide you to a safe zone."

"Any idea where this 'safe zone' is?" Naruto asked. When the old man nodded, he turned to his lovers. "Let's go."

‹‹‡››

 _ **Konoha**_

Sitting on the tatami mat in the little room she had led him into and listening to the story of her life, the shadow clone found itself struggling to hide its emotions from the young woman seated opposite him. Even then, his hands bled from the way his nails dug into the flesh of his palm, so tightly was he clenching his fists.

"So, you've been here ever since?"

Yakumo shrugged. "The Sandaime's orders were clear: I can't leave until I can express total control over _Ido_ and without any one to train me…"

"I am so sorry, Yakumo…" The clone's eyes watered as he watched her, seeing the dullness in her eyes that only hinted at the depths of despondency she had sunk to. "If I had known…"

"Naruto-kun, you were a child back then." She replied and he marveled at how strong she had to be to still retain such a sweet smile. "We only saw each other a few times in Sandaime-sama's office after all. I'm surprised you even remembered me just now; I certainly didn't."

Though it was wonderful that she didn't hold any grudges against him -or even the Sandaime!- the clone felt shamed that he had essentially forgotten the young girl he had once played with in the Hokage's office. He could see in her eyes how uncomfortable she was about the subject, though, so he dropped it and he decided to put the matter to the side. "I… Thank you, Yakumo-chan. And believe me, I'm glad to see that you're okay."

She smiled at him again and the clone swore on its life to save the girl from the cage she had been chained to. "So, tell me about yourself, Naruto-kun."

The clone launched into a mildly edited version of events regarding the Boss' life, skipping out on the matters of the multiple lovers, his investigation into the death of the Senju and his status as a Jinchuriki. "There are a few things I can't really talk about at the moment but that's the gist of things."

"It all sounds so… fun…" She said, unable to hide the sadness in her voice. Then, her words seemed to play back in her own ears and she was frantically waving and babbling her apologies. "I mean, no! It was **not** fun at all that you were betrayed -and nearly killed!- by Sasuke or that some of training you went through to become so strong were easy-"

"Yakumo!" The clone had closed the distance between them in a flash and was now -gingerly- holding on to her incredibly frail frame. "Yakumo-chan, look at me." He gently turned her face to his and waited until she shyly looked him in the eyes before smiling softly. "I know what you meant, Yakumo-chan. Really, I do." He tried to keep the bitterness away, compact in a completely different section of his mind but a bit of it bled into his mind and he decided to damn the consequences. He coulndn't stand to leave this place in the knowledge of the fact that he had met her and left without doing even a little to better her lot. So, he stared at her and then sighed. "Yakumo-chan… what if I told you that I could help you? Not just to get out of here but with everything?"

Being so close that their foreheads were mere inches apart, he could see the hope blossom in her eyes even as the pain of her past experiences warred to kill that hope and he prayed desperately that she would give him a chance.

When she pulled away from him, he felt his heart shatter and when she rose to her feet, aided by her cane, he felt dead on the inside.

"... even _Ido_?"

It was quiet, doubtful and distrusting but the fact that she had asked nearly had the clone jumping off the roof. It was with great restraint that it rose up to hold her hands and stare into her eyes with absolute determination shining through. "Yes, Yakumo-chan. Even _Ido_.*"

‹‹‡››

Hidden behind a rocky outcrop at the base of one of the many mountains that littered the lands of Kaminari no Kuni lay one of the most picturesque scenes few humans had ever laid eyes upon: two hundred meters away from the bank of a river that meandered its way along lay a simple yet elegant single storey building. Designed in the old architectural style, its frame was of bronzed wood and its walls, gleaming rice paper. The grounds around the house (save the nearly hundred meter stretch of sandy river bank) were gleaming verdant interspersed with vibrant flowers and the occasional cherry blossom, wisteria or peach tree.

Trees, of course, shed their leaves and it was for this reason that a certain lavender haired beauty, clad in a simple white yukata with a purple obi tied at her waist, stood outside, a long broom in her hands and a gentle smile on her lips as she worked.

"Asama-san?"

The lavender-haired woman turned to see who had called upon her and came face to face with a stoic looking woman with burnt-orange hair piled in a loose top-knot that left two jaw-length bangs to frame her beautiful face. The most eye-catching feature of the newcomer was that her bangs were a deep green color unlike the rest of her hair.

"Pakura-san? What are you doing out here?" She asked with a soft smile. "You were working with Uzume-chan weren't you?"

"I was." Pakura agreed, her voice bland. Beneath that blandness, however, the lavender-haired woman detected a hint of tension that was unusual coming from the former kunoichi. "Matsu-san was searching for you, though. She came downstairs in a frazzled state and was all but yelling your name."

"Oh my." The lavender haired beauty placed her hand over her mouth in a wide-eyed gasping motion. "That _is_ quite odd. Matsu isn't one to come out of her den of perversion and to come calling for me?" She paused to adjust the broomstick in her left palm. "Did she tell you what she wanted?"

"After Uzume-san and I calmed her, yes." Pakura hesitated for an almost unnoticeable second before continuing, "She detected strange energy signatures headed in this direction."

The lavender-haired lady froze and, for the first time in more than a century, connected her senses to the sensory field her former lieutenant had erected around her home. The range of her sensory ability exploded outward at a pace so rapid that it would have left a weaker mind disoriented for days; she adjusted and manipulated it with an ease born of _centuries_ of experience, first searching and then focusing on the five new signatures that were approaching at quite the pace. "Interesting…"

"Asama-san?" Pakura called quietly, not wanting to bother the woman who had saved her life all those years ago yet curious to know what was going on. "Asama-san?"

That snapped her out of her fugue. "Ara? Ah! Pakura-san! Please forgive my inattentiveness."

"No, please don't apologize to me." Pakura replied with a quick bow. "I will return inside now."

"Pakura-san please let Matsu know that I will deal with the situation as is necessary but to keep her eyes open all the same." The purple-haired woman returned to her sweeping then paused and called for the ex-kunoichi. "Please be sure to keep this from the attention of the other residents of Maison Izumo." A faint, dark pressure seemed to descend on the environment then as she smiled beatifically. "We wouldn't want to trigger needless panic in the Inn now would we?"

It didn't matter that she had experienced this same thing repeatedly over the past decade, Pakura _still_ froze as her blood crawled in primal fear. It was all she could do to stammer out her hasty agreement and then gasp as the hellish pressure vanished, leaving her to gulp in life-giving air.

"Thank you, Pakura-san."

‹‹‡››

 _ **And… done!**_

 _ ***- So yeah; Naruto's fast now but he's not quite fast enough to match Erza and Mira when they're going all out. He will get there, though. Just keeping things reasonable, that's all.**_

 _ ***- I forget who posited it but the First Rule of Battle (Warfare) states that 'No plan survives first contact with the enemy. That is why he is the enemy'**_

 _ ***- Yes. BLACK hair. I know Yugito's blonde. Just give me the chance to explain in-story**_

 _ ***- Yakumo's story has been altered to fit in this fic. Basically, everything that happened in the filler but with slight changes (it happened when she was much younger for one). I'll reveal any pertinent changes as they crop up**_

 _ **So, the story moves on and we're heading toward that prologue scene with the addition of the single most powerful genjutsu wielder in Naruto canon (Itachi is miles ahead in terms of skill but Yakumo trumps him in terms of power and effect on reality).**_

 _ **Sakura's Inner self has always fascinated me and I felt like bringing her back to run a commentary on Sakura's mental state was worth the effort.**_

 _ **Also: Naruto is DEAD when he returns; Tsunade will see to that XD**_

 _ **Not much else to point out; the next chapter is in the works now.**_

 _ **Thanks a ton to everyone who has reviewed and I truly appreciate the support for the plot I've worked on.**_


	40. Fissures: Chapter 39

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 39**

 **Happy New Month! Y'all be sure to stay safe and stay healthy and thank you for all the reviews, favorites and follows!**

* * *

 **K** **umogakure; Toride* Mountain Pass…**

"Jiraiya are you sure about this?" Naruto asked, his senses stretched as far as he could get them, as they raced across the rocky wastes of the Pass, headed further into unknown territory. It was taking every every last iota of trust he had in Jiraiya to believe that the old man wasn't leading him into danger and even then it was still a battle to keep moving.

It was the same for the rest of them -save the Nibi jinchuriki who was still unconscious- for over an hour; Jiraiya, Erza and Mira had noted it first but then even he caught on to the fact that _something_ was gradually reducing the effectiveness of their sensory abilities. It was almost like a fog save for how it affected off _all_ their senses including their eyesight: though they saw an endless plain before themselves, their instincts blared the opposite.

"Not as sure as when we headed out." Jiraiya freely admitted, wondering in a tiny portion of his mind if the Grand Old Toad Sage hadn't misled him. "Trust me kid, this is as terrifying to you as it is to me but we don't have a choice right now."

They continued moving at a quick pace, though not their fastest, when Mira suddenly called for them to halt.

"There's someone out there…" She stated quietly as they all came together. "I wasn't sure earlier but I am now: someone's tracking us."

"I haven't been _tracking_ you per se. Quietly observing is a better phrase." The 'fog' parted and the watched a beautiful, purple haired young woman of about average height walk up to them with a disarming smile on her face. She was the picture of a simple housewife with her plain white and purple kimono and her flowing hair. "It is quite late to be wandering around don't you think?"

Though she seemed utterly harmless, not a single one of Naruto's group let their guards slip for even a fraction of a second. For the shinobi, it was easy to understand why: no 'simple 'housewife' should possess the skill to essentially sneak up on a group of S-rank warriors.

For the residents of Makai, however, it was more complicated: now that she was so close to them, both Erza and Mira could sense her power reserves and, incredibly suppressed though it might be, they were both able to detect that her energy signature shared a great deal of similarity with theirs. Sharing a glance, both women knew what the other was thinking immediately: 'This woman… She's definitely from Makai.' With that little fact agreed upon, the two decided to allow Naruto and Jiraiya sort out conversation with this strange woman while they prepared themselves for possible conflict.

"Ara? I apologize for startling you all; I simply thought it best to reveal myself when one of you had detected my presence." Though the smile remained, a feeling of dread crawled up their spines and they visibly tensed. "Surely one of you can speak yes? I know you're not mute after all."

Tense as the situation was, Naruto decided to speak first, prompted by the quiet groans of the young woman still in his arms. "Hey there Obaa-san! I'm sorry that we didn't say anything; we were just surprised at the appearance of someone as pretty as yourself."

"Oh my!" Her hand flew to her mouth as her eyes grew wide in shock. "I certainly hope that wasn't an attempt at flirtation young man! I am most certainly spoken for!"

The response was so far removed from what he had expected that Naruto was left gaping and Jiraiya had to speak in his stead…

"Please forgive my godson-"

"Please be quiet; I do not like to speak to perverts."

… only to get shut down, forcing a still flustered Naruto to speak up. "I… I honestly cannot apologize for my godfather because, like you aptly noted, he _is_ quite the perverted soul. Please understand, however that he means no harm."

"All perverts are scum." She intoned, her words seemingly echoed by a thousand tortured souls.

Naruto opened his mouth, shut it and then tried again only to find that he had nothing to say to that. Knowing that he had to keep talking though, he said, "I'm sorry to seem impatient but we must be on our way."

"Oh? How come?"

"Well… we're supposed to meet someone within this region." Naruto explained cautiously. "However we seem to have lost our way."

"Oh… well, do you know their names, I wonder? The ones you seek?"

Naruto and Jiraiya shared a glance before the former shook his head no.

"Odd. You seek someone yet you know not their name." She hummed in thought, tilting her head slightly to the side before straightening again. "Were you, perhaps, _sent_ here by someone? And if so, by who?"

"An old Sage sent us." Jiraiya answered quickly, knowing that Naruto had no idea what to say. "Gamamaru was his name."

"Gamamaru hmm…?" The tension built when she stared at each of them, a cold look in her steely gray eyes… before lightening up with a brilliant smile. "Well why didn't you say so? Please, come with me."

Yet again the woman's mercurial countenance caught them off guard, leaving Naruto and Jiraiya to stare at her in befuddlement while Erza and Mira frowned in confusion while the purple haired lady simply walked on.

Then she stopped and turned her head such that they could only see half her face.

" _I'm sorry, did I stutter?_ '

That primal fear that had eroded their confidence and sent fear racing up their spines returned full force, terrifying them to such a degree that they had already covered half the distance between them before even thinking of acknowledging her demand.

Ten minutes later, their racing pulses had calmed down enough for them to think clearly again and, this time, it was Erza that spoke up: "We didn't get your name."

The woman stopped, seemed to think over the accusation before stiffening in realization that no, she had _not_ , in fact, introduced herself.

With a quick step, she had turned to them and inclined her head respectfully. "Please forgive my show of ill-manners; I am Asama Miya, landlady of the Maison Izumo." Identity given given, the purple haired lady turned and continued on her way leaving two slack-jawed residents of Makai in her wake.

"Im- Impossible!" Mira choked out as she stared at the figure walking ahead with Jiraiya in utter shock. Beside her, Erza was equally visibly stunned at the revelation, prompting an utterly befuddled Naruto to ask what the hell was going on.

"Miya-dono was-" Erza swallowed as she thought of the _legend_ they had just stumbled upon. "Miya-dono was one of the most powerful warriors in Makai. She's one of the few to have the power to match Grayfia-sama-"

"Wait. _She_ can **match** _Grayfia_?!" Though they had locked horns for a few minutes, Naruto knew that the _Regina Glacies_ was no pushover, a fact that was backed by how easily she had matched the Erza in one of her more powerful Armors. The idea that the gentle looking woman -who was even now chatting amicably with Jiraiya- could match that was downright terrifying. "What the hell is she doing here?!"

"She was sent here by Kyubi-sama when some of the resident clans of Makai sought to live on this plane." Mira answered, her voice still hushed in reverence. "She serves as the adjudicator in cases of issues that might lead to inter-clan battles."

"That would explain how O-Gama-Sennin knew about her." Naruto stated, having already learned the origins of Summoning Clans from Jiraiya. "Though it seems quite odd that she has been living out here for so long; surely she knows about Kumogakure?"

Mira couldn't hold back a derisive snort at that. "Jiraiya called this region 'Toride' right? Well, I'm pretty sure the reason it's got that name is tied to the same reason there are no outposts anywhere near this area."

"While Mira's line of thought may be right, it is far more likely that Miya-dono simply erected powerful bounded fields to keep any… undesirables away." Erza suggested more calmly now that her shock had worn off. "Then again, knowing her, a combination of the two is the most likely case."

"So she frightened the crap out of the residents _and then_ wrapped the area up in powerful sealing barriers? Overkill much?"

"Humans have a tendency to attack first and ask questions later, Uzumaki-kun." Miya responded from her position a few feet ahead, proving that she had heard every word of their -mostly- hushed conversation. "Faced with such a fact, well, protecting myself seemed paramount as opposed to being open and hospitable, no?"

Naruto couldn't deny the wisdom in her decision and so he switched topics. "How much longer before we get to your place, Miya-dono?"

"We're almost there," She replied. "We'll just round this bend and…"

"Oh my…"

"Damn."

"Holy…"

"Wow!"

All four guests were rendered speechless by the the picturesque scene ahead of them; the beauty of the riverside abode, the peaceful atmosphere provided by the greenery and the rustic elegance of the building itself combined to create a truly breathtaking image that each of them committed to memory.

"Okay, I've got to hand it to you Miya-san; _this?_ This is worth being paranoid for." Jiraiya said softly.

‹‹‡››

 _ **Konoha…**_

"You know, I might actually _miss_ your stick-in-the-mud ass when you're finally out of our hair." Tenten mused as she looked through the drawers of the apartment Kurotsuchi was still pretty much relegated to. "I mean, who'd have thunk it right?"

Said Iwa kunoichi rolled her eyes as she filled a pot with water from the tap and hefted it over to the stove. "Har-de-har, Scream Queen, fucking-A pun there."

"Like you could do better." The brunette smirked, juggling a trio of onions before setting them beside a chopping block and setting to work.

"Bitch please; puns are my thing."

Tenten could smell the bullshit laced in her friend's every words and she was all too happy to call her out on it. "Then by all means, let's hear your best, o great Queen of Puns."

Kurotsuchi was trapped and she knew it. As such, she shook her head and replied with a haughty "You're not worthy, peasant," that had them both laughing. "So, neither Matchstick not Blondie are back from their missions yet?"

"Nope. Ino's working with a tracking team to hunt down a target and Naruto's not back from the retrieval mission." Tenten shrugged as she slid the now-chopped onions into a bowl and passed them to Kurotsuchi. "Honestly, I'm quite worried for Naruto but I'm sure he'll be back soon."

"He'd better." Kurotsuchi groused, splashing a dab of oil into a wok before tossing in the onions. "Prep the rest of the veg please."

"On it. Don't forget to get the rice." Tenten replied as she walked over to get the vegetables. "Anyhow, Naruto's going up against someone who should have been put down _years_ ago if it were up to me."

"Must have been something personal to get you all riled up." Kurotsuchi whistled at the sheer venom in the brunette's tone. "What? He kick your puppy?"

"More like he nearly killed my boyfriend." Tenten answered with a dark scowl. "I mean, I barely even knew Naruto back then but now-"

"Now you're the fucking angel of vengeance." The Iwa kunoichi couldn't hide the smirk upon hearing that. "I might have doubted your love and all but I think you just convinced me that you're more than fuck buddies."

Now it was Tenten's turn to roll her eyes at the dark haired girl. "Don't think I can't recognize those jealous glares and thirsty stares bitch. If you want a piece of him just say so."

"Me and Matchstick?" Kurotsuchi snorted at that, though she was glad that her back was to the brunette because she knew damned well that the heat she could feel across her cheeks had _nothing_ to do with the steam rising out of the pot she now stood over. "Yeah, keep your fantasies to yourself Scream Queen."

"They're more his than mine, though I can't quite deny the attraction on a primal level." Tenten shrugged casually as she took the prepared veggies over to the wok to continue on the stir-fry. "I mean, you're quite the looker."

"Okay, way TMI!" Kurotsuchi cried, now feeling slightly creeped out by her friend's words. "Dammit girl; you lost your filter or something?"

"Um, you may have forgotten but a decent part of my mission dossiers involve seduction, eroticism and pretty much all things sex." That was something of an exaggeration, Tenten knew but it certainly didn't slow her down. "Ino, myself and the rest of our department are a lot more used to openly analyzing stuff like fantasies and attractions. I can, and am, literally talk about my baser desires wanting to throw you on a bed and ravage you to the edge of sanity before my boyfriend throws you right off the cliff while preparing dinner."

"Okay…" The raven haired kunoichi tried once, twice to say something and shorted out both times. She paused to dump the rice into the water and tried again. "Ten, I'm chill as fuck with my sexuality but- I just-"

"Wanna have Naruto fuck you to the moon and back?" Tenten asked, again seeming as nonchalant as if they were talking about the weather. "Look, I'm not asking you to do something you're uncomfortable with, I'm just telling you that I wouldn't give a damn about it if you did jump him."

Kurotsuchi gave the brunette the mother of all stink-eyes. "You're like a dog with a bone aren't you?"

"Only one." Tenten's smirk rang every bell in the Iwa kunoichi's mind and, after a split second, she realized why and tried her best to stop what was coming… "Naruto's."

A pained groan ripped through the kitchen as did the sound of a face hitting callused palms.

‹‹‡››

"Welcome to our humble abode. The rest of the residents are likely asleep now so please be as quiet as you can." Miya bowed as she opened the door leading into Maison Izumo's large living room. "Uzumaki-kun, please set the young lady down on the couch beneath the window." She gestured toward the desired location and Naruto did as she asked. "In the meantime, I understand that you must be feeling quite tired now, considering the time so please give me a moment to prepare a few rooms for you."

"Eh? Oh that won't be necessary, Miya-san." Jiraiya waved dismissively. "The four of us will just rough it right here on the mat."

"Ara? Are you throwing my most hospitable offer in my face, Jiraiya-san?" Though her tilted head and beatific smile alluded toward an innocent demeanor, the dark, ominous aura she was giving off turned it into something else entirely.

Jiraiya, what ever else his faults might be, was no idiot: he recognized her words as the threat they were. However, after spending much of their journey chatting with her, the Toad Sage had come to a conclusion about the purple haired woman: for all her innocent looks and charming smiles, she was a master at manipulating people to do as she desired and her preferred weapon was fear. "I most certainly am not. However, as you said, it is quite late and the other residents of this _precious building_ are likely asleep. Having you prepare rooms for us increases the chances that they might be roused from their slumber. As such, it would be better if we simply spent the night here."

For the first time in decades, Miya found herself in an untenable situation: not only had Jiraiya defied her -in her own home, no less!- he put her in checkmate while doing so! Reluctantly, she pulled back her aura of DOOM! (as Matsu was wont to call it) and acquiesced to his decision with a shallow bow. "Seeing as you are perfectly alright then I shall not bother preparing dinner and head to bed myself. Good night all."

"See ya in the morning, Miya-san!" Jiraiya greeted cheerfully, completely ignoring the rebellious growls coming from his stomach. That little parting shot from her was meant to have him re-think his decision and Jiraiya would be damned if he allowed her to sway him!

As soon as the purple haired woman had disappeared around the corner, the white haired sage turned to the rest of his team… only to see them staring at him in disbelief. Still mildly cranky from his stomach's -violent- reminder of its current emptiness, he snapped at them, "What? You've never seen someone stand up to an authority figure before?!"

"Not to _that_ authority figure, no." Erza admitted somewhat cautiously. "Miya-dono is… well, she isn't someone just _anyone_ would _dare_ stand up to."

"Especially not in her own home." Mira added, a sentiment a certain voyeur fully agreed with from the safety of her room.

"Yeah well I did it. Now shut up and go to bed." Jiraiya shot back snarkily before collapsing right there onto the mat and feigning sleep.

From his spot beside the still unconscious jinchuuriki, Naruto whispered a quiet "Someone's clearly hungry," to which Jiraiya responded with a middle finger. Knowing that they were finally safe -from the reaches of Kumogakure at least- Naruto let out a tired laugh at his godfather's antics and turned to address his otherworldly lovers. "Well, I guess that settles it then. Pick out your spot and let's hit the hay for the day." With his piece said, Naruto checked the raven haired jinchuuriki's pulse and, after feeling its steady, rhythmic throb beneath his fingers, he let go of her hand and stretched out on the floor a few feet away from Jiraiya and laced his hands beneath his head.

'So, took down the bastard and his little bitch and rescued a fellow jinchuuriki today. Not bad for a day's job.' He decided as he slowly but surely succumbed to the sandman's call.

‹‹‡››

Sometime later, Naruto woke up with a jaw-cracking yawn, feeling his joints pop as he stretched languidly. "Ugh, damn that felt good!" He murmured as he glanced around the room, smiling at the sound of Erza's nasal rattle, only to pause when he noticed the absence of a certain white haired beauty. Growing just a bit worried, he quickly focused on his bond with his summons to check in on her, his anxiety soothed when he felt her presence somewhere above him. "What are you doing up there?"

Destination locked, the blond quietly got up and snuck out of the living room, sliding the rice paper door shut before swiftly making his way up the building to see his beautiful lover laid out on the roof, staring into the dark, pre-dawn sky.

"Enjoying the cool night air?" He asked as he took a seat beside her.

"It got a little bit annoying to listen to Little Red's snores back there and the skies looked so beautiful tonight so…"

"You're more beautiful than any night sky in my eyes." He said with a gentle smile. Seeing her lack of reaction, though, his smile disappeared. "You're still pissed at me."

It wasn't a question; he knew, prior to his departure to face Sasuke, that he would be facing the fallout of his decision upon his return but now, in the face of her chilly attitude, he could _feel_ that there was _something_ _else,_ something important that she wasn't telling him.

Getting her to talk to him had to take priority so he shimmied down to sit by her side and took her hand in his. "You know that I love you right? In spite of my stubborn decision to go ahead with the mission earlier, I need you to understand that I love you."

Though she scoffed at his words, he could feel that she understood him and was only putting up an act out of anger, anger that he had to alleviate.

"Mira, I know that I hurt you when I decided to head out on the mission earlier tonight but I… I didn't really have a choice." He sighed when she shut her eyes and began to rub his thumb against the back of her hand in lazy little circles. "The thing is, more than the fact that Baa-chan made it an official mission, I just couldn't _not_ accept it. For the longest time in my life, Sasuke was _**the**_ benchmark. I was the annoying orphan who couldn't do anything right and he was the golden boy of the entire Village, a place I wanted to _lead_ when I grew up. He was intelligent, skilled, touted as a freaking _prodigy_! In my mind, if I could beat this 'perfect specimen' then I could do whatever the hell I put my mind to. So, placing him as the gold standard in my mind, I trained my ass off with the singular aim of becoming better than him. Sure, if you'd asked me then, I'd have said that my goal was to be the Hokage -no, I think I'd have screamed it off the rooftop, really." She still didn't say a word but he felt her body shudder with repressed laughter and knew that he was on the right track. "But- but while the Hokage dream was a lot more nebulous, deep inside me, I had a much more vivid dream: I wanted to beat the tar out of the smug genius bastard in my class, a goal that became even more important when I had to fight for the 'love of my life' as well. So I trained to do just that. I may have been deprived of the right tools to succeed due to the prejudiced bias of the asshole instructors but I did what I could. And then, when I hit gold and got onto the same team as Sasuke _and_ Sakura? Well, my focus became even more laser-like.

"I absolutely _had to beat him_! Yet, somehow, my one-sided rivalry with him slowly became a two-way thing; for some reason, he saw _me_ , the chronic dead-last, as a rival! It came out of nowhere yet it strengthened our bond as individuals so that I began to see more than just the genius; I saw the scarred little kid whose entire life had been ripped to shreds by his own older brother. I saw the pain, anger, _hate_ in his eyes and I wanted to make sure he never gave in to that because…" Naruto sighed, knowing that he was about to reveal a darker part of himself to her.

"Because I had been there. I had been at that point of anger, of _hate_ that threatens to consume a person and had only escaped because I had been pulled away by an old ramen chef and his daughter. I understood Sasuke and so I wanted to be 'the ramen guy' who pulled him off the path of destruction. I did everything I could back then to get him off that path but I failed and in the end, he fell to his hate. As a child then, I was quick to promise that I would bring him back but… I think I always knew that I couldn't really bring him back. Not on my own. Whatever redemption Sasuke sought, he'd only ever find it after Itachi-"

"So why did you go after him yesterday?" The question was abrupt; sharply spoken and carrying undertones of anger yet softly spoken so that none but he would hear it. "If you knew you couldn't bring him back on your own, why try?"

"I had to try, Mira, because that tiny part of me that still believed in the friendly rivalry we once shared. I had to try because letting him go would have meant letting go of one of my first true emotional bonds and, for a kid who never really had much of anything, letting go of the little he had was utterly terrifying."

"So you put your life on the line -literally, thanks to the pink haired slut's bullshit- because you couldn't let go?"

As much as he wanted to defend his old teammate, Naruto knew that the time and place was wrong for such a discussion so he skipped to the next part. "I put my life on the line because I couldn't just write him off, Mira; I had to give him a chance."

Yet again, the succubus scoffed at his words. "I distinctly recall you attempting to maim him the instant you laid eyes on him."

"He forced me to, Mira." Naruto sighed, recalling the fight that had taken place before the redhead's interference. "While I may not love Sakura as I do you, I still care for her -bullshit moves and all. When Sasuke showed that he was willing to kill Sakura in cold blood, it showed me that he was beyond the chance I had given him. For him to have been willing to kill Sakura, it meant that he'd happily burn the Village down to get at Itachi and I knew I could _never_ stand for that."

"So you charged right into battle, forgetting that you had an expectant lover back home." Mira sneered angrily. "Typical."

"Mira come- wait." His mind finally processed the words he had just heard and his eyes grew to the size of dinner plates.

"I'm going to be a _**father**_?!"

‹‹‡››

 **So, I'm not sure how well I made my point come across but the conversation between Tenten and Kurotsuchi was planned; heck, the reason Tenten's a part of the Seduction and Infiltration team was to explain why she doesn't actually give a damn about Naruto shagging other people: she can sort through her feelings on an almost analytical level and separate straight up lust from love. I dunno, it's probably weird to us but I think a world of ninja should be able to teach their troops to separate love from lust, especially to a seduction crew.**

 **Regarding Miya: I've tried to keep her character as close to the source as possible so yay aura of DOOM! (The Hannyas are coming!)**

 **So, Not much else to say here except to beg y'all to Read and Review.**

 **Next chapter FINALLY gets to the 'black haired jinchuuriki' explanation as well as more Maison Izumo antics.**

 ***- Toride: Blackhold (just for those that would want to know)**

 **PS: Yes, Naru-chan, you're gonna be a daddy!**


	41. Fissures: Chapter 40

**The Contract**

 **Chapter 40**

By the time Jiraiya and Erza got up two hours later, they were treated to the sight of a thoroughly embarrassed Mirajane sitting on the foyer just beyond the living room being waited upon hand and foot by the orange whirlwind of action that was Naruto, all under the amused eyes of their host and a dark haired man, both of whom were enjoying a steaming mug of tea at the dinner table.

It didn't take Erza ten seconds to figure out what was going on, having already been told by her best friend but Jiraiya was still out of the loop, a status the Spymaster absolutely detested.

He was an easygoing man, though, so rather than do anything drastic, the Toad Sage simply let loose a loud yawn that was sure to get the kid's attention. "Alright, alright; who let my idiot godson into the sugar jar, so goddamn early? I mean, I've barely been up five minutes and my head's already-"

"I'm gonna be a dad!"

The exclaimed yell was so loud that it almost felt like a wall of sound had blasted out of the kitchen, much to Mira's growing embarrassment. A few seconds later, the blond raced out of the kitchen and dashed toward the foyer with what looked like towels draped over an arm only to be snatched out of the air with an almost cartoonish 'YOINK!' by his befuddled godfather. "You're gonna be a what now?"

"A dad! I'm going to be a dad Ero-Sensei!" So overjoyed was he that he slipped back into his old mannerisms. "Mira's pregnant!"

Jiraiya's fist unclenched mechanically, releasing the blond to head over to his lover as he processed the words he had just heard.

The last thing he remembered before crashing to the ground was having a single thought.

'Oh Tsunade-hime's going to have my fucking balls for this.'

‹‹‡››

By the time Jiraiya woke up, a number of the other inhabitants of Maison Izumo had emerged from their cozy rooms to see what was causing all the racket. The sight of the frenetic blond stranger dashing about the house would have alarmed them had they not seen their Landlady and her husband visibly taking pleasure in the spectacle unfolding before them.

It had taken Miya's intervention to get Naruto to finally ease off, something Mira had taken advantage of to pull him aside for a long kiss and an explanation that, while she she deeply appreciated his fawning, she was still capable of taking care of herself.

Blushing at his own behaviour, the blond suggested that they spend time out on the waterfront, a suggestion Mira was all too happy to take up. They were joined by another couple; a busty, happy-go-lucky brunette called Uzume and her cute, petite blonde girlfriend Chiho.

Erza had opted to stay behind to watch over the still unconscious Jinchuriki who had been cleaned up and had her dirty, damaged clothes switched out for a clean -but plain- pair of dark blue shorts and a black shirt by the Landlady and a quiet woman with orange hair and green bangs called Pakura.

The Toad Sage had been dragged into a spare room on the ground floor by Miya's husband, an unassuming man with dark hair and eyes that gleamed behind rectangular, wire-rimmed glasses who now sat by the window reading a certain novel.

It was, in fact, the man's giggles and commentary on the novel in question that drew Jiraiya out of his impromptu nap.

"I'd recognize that sound anywhere." He rumbled with a grin that was equally proud as it was perverse. "A fan of the greatest work of literature is around me!"

"What pleasures lie beyond the golden hills?" The question was casually asked; to the casual observer it was a random statement, likely read from the book.

Jiraiya knew otherwise. "Only the pleasures of the flesh for those who seek such."

It was a line from his second _Icha Icha_ novel, one that had been panned for its overuse of sex in the plot. Though he had learned from _that_ fuck up, the book had become revered among his most hardcore fans, many of whom used lines from the book as trivia between themselves.

Clearly, this young man was one such fan.

"It's good to see that even in the Boonies we've still have men of culture." Jiraiya smirked as he sat up. "I'd have thought the purple haired shrew would keep a lid on such things."

A dark, subtly oppressive aura leaked out of the man as he glared at the old lecher. "That's my wife you're talking about."

Jiraiya, realizing the faux pas he had committed immediately let out a boisterous laugh while scratching at the back of his neck in a manner eerily reminiscent of his godson. "Ah, did I say shrew? I meant _shrewd_ , as in your wife is a truly shrewd woman!"

Still maintaining that haunting glare, the man asked, "How would you know that when you only just met her?"

The shiver of fear that ran down Jiraiya's spine -coupled with that ever so subdued strangled noise from his throat- would have warmed Tsunade's heart.

"You know, if anyone had told me that the great Jiraiya-sama of Mount Myobuku would one day cower in fear on my spare futon I'd have laughed in their faces yet here we are." The oppressive aura disappeared in a flash and Jiraiya was flashed one of the most sincere smiles he had ever seen. "How humorous fate can be."

The Toad Sage, realizing that the man had -essentially- pulled a prank on him, let loose another, more relaxed belly laugh. "Oh ho, you're quite the skilled prankster aren't you?"

"One tries." The man shrugged humbly, though a faint smile was evident on him. "Asama Takehito, landlord of this little neck of the woods and husband to one Asama Miya."

"I'd introduce myself but you already know who I am." Jiraiya smirked. "Wanna tell me what's up with this little set up you've got here?"

"Only if you tell me about your presence here." Takehito countered easily. "Thanks to Matsu-chan's skill at creating bounded fields, we don't get many visitors of the human variety around here so your presence here is something of an anomaly."

"I'd guessed as much…" Jiraiya sighed before launching into a quick summary of how they had wound up on the Asama's property.

"Interesting…" Takehito hummed as he scratched at the little stubble he had on his chin. "And the two that your apprentice rescued that young lady from; do you think they might be able to find their way in here?"

"Honestly? I can't tell. I only got in thanks to whatever the Grand Sage did to me that allowed me to see right through the barriers that kept your little hidey-hole secret." Jiraiya admitted. "Unfortunately, I've seen some shinobi pull off some really insane shit in my time and the guys that are hunting people like that little lady out there are some of the best of the best."

"So hope for the best while expecting the worst hmm…" Takehito sat back and sighed. "I suppose that's to be expected really."

So what's your story then?" Jiraiya prodded. "How'd you end up with Miya-san?"

A smile softened the man's features as he recalled the series of events that had led to his eventual marriage to the purple haired beauty. "Well, a lifetime ago, I was one of Kumogakure's Research and Development top scientists. Under the heading of our somewhat _eccentric_ boss, we sought every possible advancement we could find to give us the advantage over you Tree Hugging bastards." Though harsh, the words were spoken with a lilting tone that told Jiraiya that the man meant no harm with the words. "Suffice it to say that one of our expeditions into the Mountains had… explosive results. I remember flying ass over teakettle after the explosion, wondering why damned Minaka just had to keep pushing. _For Science!_ as he always said."

"Sounds like a real kook."

"Oh you don't know the half of it!" Takehito snorted. "Anyhow, I black out after hitting what feels like a slab of steel only to wake up to-"

"Takehito-koi?" Miya's gentle voice called out, drawing their attention the the purple-haired beauty. "Breakfast is -ara? It seems Jiraiya-san has awoken."

The white haired Sage flashed a grin at her. "How's it going Miya-san?"

"Very well thank you." The landlady's smile then dropped in a theatrical show of sadness. "Unfortunately, as I thought you were still asleep, I only prepared food for those who remained awake."

The loud gurgle of an empty stomach was distinctly heard as Jiraiya's face paled. "Wait… So…?"

Miya's beatific smile was the kind worn by many a tyrannical emperor as they ordered their troops to pillage towns, kill puppies and generally do some truly vile acts. "I'm afraid there will be no breakfast for you."

Screw warming her heart; Tsunade would have sold half the Senju fortunes to have heard the pained whimper Jiraiya let out.

‹‹‡››

Two hours later, the grounds of Maison Izumo were peaceful and quiet, all of the rambling noise of the morning having given way to serenity.

While the regular inhabitants of the house milled about having hushed discussions with one another, the quartet of Naruto, Erza, Mira and a now fully-fed Jiraiya (Takehito having shown pity for his favorite author had convinced his wife to feed the starving Sage, an action which was taken with much grumbling of said wife's part) were sprawled out around a bed in one of the guest rooms on the ground floor. Mira had her head resting on Naruto's shoulder while Erza used his lap as a headrest on the left side of the room while a mellow Jiraiya had the right side to his lonesome self, much to his feigned-chagrin.

"Do you think she's going to wake up anytime soon?" Naruto asked quietly as he ran his fingers through Erza's luxuriant locks. "I mean, she's been out of it for more than twelve hours now."

"Jeez, kid, give the girl a break." Jiraiya yawned. "She's nearly had her biju ripped out of her and, if my research indicates anything, it's that-"

"You have a tiny dick?" Mira interjected with a slight snicker.

"You're free to come find out. ***** " Jiraiya replied smoothly. "As I was saying, everything I've looked into points to the extraction process being ungodly painful." A degree of seriousness crept into the Sage's tone then. "Kid, every non-Uzumaki jinchuuriki dies mere moments after their biju gets extracted and even Lady Mito didn't make it out unscathed; her entire chakra circulatory system was shot to hell; pulling on so much as a drop of chakra caused her to suffer muscular spasms and it only got worse the more chakra she tried to call up. As far as I know, the only reason your mom didn't keel over right after Kyubi got ripped out of her -even as an Uzumaki- was cause she was running on love and pure instinct."

It was a truly sobering statement that should have brought up the danger of being what he was -a Sacrifice- to the forefront of his mind.

Instead, all Naruto could think about was the fact that his mother had pushed through such agony to ensure that he survived.

For the first time in his life, he began to believe that maybe, just _maybe_ his parents really did love him and were just dealt a shitty hand.

As if they could read into his thoughts, both Erza and Mira brought their hands up to clasp his hands, one apiece, in a show of support.

Jiraiya, who hadn't noticed the silent show on the other side of their unconscious guest, continued; "… as such, I really think you should just let the young lady sleep."

"I would if you all would be quiet."

It took a few seconds for them to realize that the quiet voice -laced with an underlying tone of regal annoyance- was none they recognized.

Erza was the first to sit up, followed by Naruto and Mira while Jiraiya just continued picking at his teeth with his fingernail. "Good to see that sleeping beauty's finally up."

"I'm not certain I appreciate that moniker." _Sleeping Beauty,_ as Jiraiya had nicknamed her, gingerly pushed herself up to a seating position with one hand while her left gently massaged her temple, nursing what Naruto guessed would feel like the mother of all headaches. "One doesn't go through the hell I just did to be given such an inane title."

"Please, girly; you were asleep and you're a somewhat passable beauty." Jiraiya snorted. "Sounds like a fair match."

"You have nice eyes." Naruto noted with interest as the woman pushed her raven hair out of her face and blinked rapidly. He had heard of heterochromia before and even knew of a few skin and/or hair cases, most recent of them being the orange-and-green haired resident of Maison Izumo but this was the first time he saw it displayed in the eyes: the iris of her left eye glittered like emeralds while her right was a deep golden yellow.

Naruto's comment drew the woman's attention to him at the same time Erza and Mira turned to her such that all three women locked gazes at about the same time.

Cue the surprised gapes.

"Erza-chan?! Mira-chan?! What are you two doing here?!"

"Matatabi-dono?! How is this-?!"

"How are you _here_ Nibi-sama?!"

While the three women shot rapid fire questions at each other, Jiraiya and Naruto could only stare in absolute befuddlement until the Toad Sage finally spoke up. "Mind sharing how you two recognize Kumo's jinchuriki and she seems t- **ACK**!"

The sequence of events happened faster than anyone within the room could _blink_ : one instant, Jiraiya was speaking, the next, the raven haired woman had him pinned to the wall with a hand, holding him by the neck, her eyes blazing with barely suppressed hate. " _ **Never say those words in my presence."**_ The words were quietly spoken yet they bore the promise of untold pain to anyone foolish enough to defy them.

And then, as quickly as it had begun, the situation ended as the woman released Jiraiya to drop limply to the floor, hacking and coughing as he went while she leveled an annoyed glare at Mirajane. "You would be wise to keep your thralls under tighter leashes, Mira; had I not thought that he was one of yours, you'd be in search of another. At least the blond one retained enough intellect to remain silent."

The white haired Succubus winced apologetically at her words before venturing timidly; "Er, Matatabi-dono, he _isn't_ my thrall. Neither of them are."

The woman, Matatabi, leveled an imperious -yet quizzical- stare at the Succubus, silently demanding an explanation for whatever the hell was going on before deciding to check it out herself. It took less than a second for her to release a little pulse of energy that washed over everyone in the room, allowing her to scan their energy signatures.

Mira's eyes grew wide as she realized what the Twin Tailed Nekoshou Queen was doing and what would undoubtedly be revealed. "Matatabi-dono! Wait-!"

Much like with Jiraiya earlier, the raven haired woman seemed to simply appear in front of her target, pinning them to the wall in an instant, her face twisted into a furious snarling visage.

" _ **Jinchuriki.**_ " She hissed, her words a death knell. " _ **And of my sister too. What a joy.**_ "

Erza and Mira's eyes grew in horror upon seeing the Nekoshou slowly raise her left hand, her fingernails extending into cruel points that were set alight with cruel, blue-black flames. "Matatabi-dono-!"

" _ **Unless you wish for me to brand you as traitors you will**_ _ **stand**_ __ _ **back**_ _ **.**_ " She commanded, not taking her eyes away from the violently thrashing Naruto's. " _ **I haven't seen my sister in decades so I think a family reunion is in order.**_ "

Naruto was terrified. It didn't seem to matter how much power he put into his punches; it didn't matter where he struck her, this woman -no, this **thing** just didn't seem to budge. Even worse, her once dark eyes now glowed a menacing blue, hinting at the depths of power she could call up in an instant.

For the first time, he stared his own mortality in the face.

Mira couldn't bear to stand aside any longer and she dived forward, aiming to knock the woman away only to be snagged almost casually out of the by a tail of flickering blue flames.

" _ **So**_ _ **this**_ _ **is how you choose to repay my sister, Mira-chan? Defending this**_ _ **human**_ __ _ **child**_ _ **? And here I thought you were trying to make amends for your people.**_ " Her tone was cold yet vitriolic and she slanted a glare at Erza. " _ **Well, Knightwalker? Are you also a traitor?**_ "

From her spot standing over Jiraiya, the redhead could only clench her teeth in impotent frustration, knowing that, for all her power, she would barely pose a threat to the Twin Tailed Hellcat. Because, though she was an eight-tailed kitsune, Erza knew that the Royalty of Makai wielded power so potent that she only barely scaled to the One-Tailed Desert King.

She had no choice but to lower her head. "If I may plead your indulgence, Nibi-sama?"

The raven haired woman tilted her head to the side, still focused on the squirming human in her hand. She was surprised by his tenacity; she had been siphoning off life force to weaken him ever since she gripped his throat yet, almost seven minutes later, he was still struggling to push her back.

Considering the fact that even the white haired fool from earlier was still trying to get his bearings after less than a minute of contact -which was about average for a human- the blond's efforts were nothing short of astounding and had pricked her curious nature.

It was that interest more than anything that made her nod to the Knightwalker's plea.

"Nibi-sama, I beg you to look into his soul before you decree judgement upon him."

'Curious-er and curious-er…' Matatabi thought, her narrowed eyes now glowing with interest more than the initial rage that had suffused her being. While she wasn't particularly close to her sister's guardians -she had her own after all- Matatabi knew of them by reputation and she knew that the Knightwalker, while occasionally prone to emotional outbursts, was often quite level-headed and didn't make requests lightly.

For Erza to have asked her to look into this boy's soul… 'Come to think of it, Mira was ready to tackle me for his sake.' She mulled, shifting her focus for a second to the white haired girl who simply hung limply in her tail's grasp. She had altered the flames to function purely as energy binds so she new that the Succubus wasn't hurting physically but the look in the girl's eyes…

She glared again at the jinchuriki in her grasp and plunged her flame tipped claws into his belly.

‹‹‡››

For over five minutes, Naruto's body jerked up harshly, wracked by violent coughs. When he finally regained control over himself, he rolled over and tried to steady his breathing only to go deathly still upon realizing that his hands were covered up to the wrist in water. He glanced up and came face to face with the tremendous reinforced gates that sealed his first lover away.

"No, no, no!" He whispered fearfully as he fought to rise to his feet, his head still woozy and his balance terribly messed up. "What the hell did that woman do to me?!"

From his experience, he knew for certain that any event that led to him suddenly appearing in his mindscape meant that he was almost certainly unconscious. In this case, he hoped desperately that it was just that and not something more… permanent.

"Kyuubi? Kyuubi!" He yelled as he ran up to the cage. He couldn't detect the Queen's potent energy signature in the seal and that terrified him. Was she okay? Had something happened to her? And what about Mira and Erza? And his yet-unborn child? What-?"

"So that's why Erza wanted me to look into your soul. Interesting."

He whirled round violently, sending ripples through the water as he turned to set eyes on the woman that had so effortlessly held him down mere seconds before. His eyes narrowed as he shifted into a defensive stance. "What the hell are _you_ doing in here?"

"I'm doing as my sister's guardian pleaded: searching your soul." Matatabi shot back dismissively, her mind seemingly occupied by other matters.

"The hell are you talking about?"

"Your memories of your interactions with my sister have been particularly poignant, an impressive feat considering how no one has ever caught my sister's eyes as you have." When she observed that he still seemed baffled by her words, the raven haired woman frowned. Surely the intellect he had displayed over the course of his memories hadn't abruptly departed him had they? "Erza-san asked me to look into your soul; I'm doing that by looking through your memories."

"How…?" Naruto paused then shook his head, deciding that now was not the time for such thoughts. "No, no you don't get to go perusing my mind and waltzing through my memories like you're glancing through a damned catalogue. Those are personal so if you don't mind, I'd prefer it if you got the hell out!"

"Rude." Matatabi stated indifferently, though she did as he asked having seen what she needed. "If I didn't know that _you_ didn't know better, I'd have taken your head off."

"You don't know me." Naruto replied coldly, keeping himself between the seal and this woman. "Now **get. Out!** "

The raven haired woman stared at him unblinkingly for a few moments before sighing and snapping her fingers.

The world blinked around them and the next thing Naruto knew was that he was slumped against a wall with Mira fretting over him. On the other end of the room, Erza shot furtive glances between himself and the calmly seated Matatabi.

"I owe you all an apology." The Nekoshou Queen started quietly, drawing their attention. "While I am not usually a violent person, remaining captive for so long has made me hate even the term used for my prisons and I took things too far in my anger." The Hellcat stared at her hands, worrying away at her lower lip before continuing. "Mirajane; I know that some of my words were thoughtless and hurtful. Please accept my sincere apologies."

The white haired succubus didn't utter a word of acknowledgement, choosing instead to keep her focus on her still-recovering blond love. Her silence was telling, though, and Matatabi's tired sigh implied that she had unpacked the wordless message.

"I misjudged you, Uzumaki-san, and I treated you wrongly as a result of my own faulty judgement. I understand that after my… impetuous actions, my words will mean very little to you so I'll take my leave for now and wait for you on the roof of this building." The Nekoshou stated as she stood. "I'll answer whatever questions you have for me there."

‹‹‡››

"So I was right: you do know how to utilize Natural energy."

Matatabi turned to the approaching Toad Sage and arched an eyebrow. "I'm surprised that a human even knows what Natural energy is, to say nothing of the fact that it can be 'utilized'."

"I've trained with the toads much further than many people do with their summons." Jiraiya answered as he stood beside the Queen on the roof, watching as the other residents of Maison Izumo did whatever caught their fancy in the balmy afternoon breeze. "Though I'm nowhere near perfect at it, I've got decent mileage in my imperfect Sage mode."

"An imperfect Sage? You're quite an oddity aren't you…?"

"Jiraiya." He supplied easily. "Mind if I take a seat?"

"Suit yourself."

"Thanks."

Nothing was said for a few minutes until Matatabi sighed. "You have questions, don't you?"

"I do, actually. I was just wondering how I'd break the ice on that."

"Consider it broken then. Whether I choose to answer or not…"

"Yeah, that's your prerogative." Jiraiya conceded. "I guess my first question would be about your hair color."

"I was wondering when someone would ask that." She admitted with a faint scowl. "Though I'm certainly glad to have my old hair back, even if I am trapped in this human girl's for for the moment."

"So you _did_ do something to Yugito."

"Perhaps." She said simply before going quiet. While Jiraiya wondered if that meant she would say no more on the subject, the Nekoshou Queen pondered over whether or not to say more regarding it.

In the end, she decided to speak up. After all, her sister had spoken to this man before and, to a little degree, revealed something of herself.

"During the extraction process, I could feel more than my power leaving me; minutely at first, but growing larger every second were portions of my soul being drained by the extraction. Call it desperation or survival instinct or even spite: whatever the case, I chose to exchange positions with my jailer." Though her gaze rested on the horizon, Jiraiya could feel the sudden weight within those eyes and he restrained himself from speaking for the moment. "Understand this: my actions were born out of her own stubbornness. While Hachibi and his host had forged a partnership somewhat similar to that between your godson and my sister, Yugito did her absolute best to ignore my existence. It didn't matter that her friend, the one known as Kirabi, repeatedly advised her to speak to me; it didn't matter to her that I tried to talk to her, to get her to see things my way and respect me simply as a living being; to her, I was a power source to be called upon, utilized whenever the need arose and discarded when the threats passed."

"So you felt no remorse having her take your place?"

A pair of feline like eyes, glowing with the power of senjutsu, slanted a cool gaze at him. "Would you?"

Jiraiya had no answer. "Second question, then: if you had a chance to return home but you had to betray Naruto-"

"The answer to that is no." She replied swiftly, unflinchingly. "Not because I care for your godson, however, but because my sister does and I will never betray her. She's suffered through that once before and I'll be damned before she has to go through it again." Matatabi closed her eyes and immersed herself in the energy of the world again and Jiraiya, clearly understanding that the conversation had come to and abrupt end, decided to head downstairs.

There was a certain, familiar heterochromatic haired woman in the apartment that had piqued his interest.

‹‹‡››

 _ ***- I'm trying to give Jiraiya a slightly dignified kind of personality when he's with those he considers his family. As such, while he's still a pervert, he's more of a relaxed, wise-cracking guy in private than an outrageously flamboyant pervert as is his public persona. As such, this 'You're free to find out' is NOT an actual invite, just a wisecrack counter to Mira's initial jab. [In the same vein, Erza, Mira and the others take Jiraiya as that fun-loving yet annoying member of the family that they all like but won't hesitate to poke fun at.]**_

 _ **So, the 'hows & whys' aren't fully revealed but the the reason Yugito -who should be blonde- has raven hair is that she **__**isn't**_ _ **Yugito; she's Matatabi.**_

 _ **Anyhow, we'll get to see how things are going in Konoha in the next chapter so please, stick around for that and don't forget to review please!**_

 _ **PS: I received a PM that I feel I should address here: Naruto's power level/ ranking.**_

 _ **Put simply, Naruto is, at this point, an A-rank -bordering on S-rank shinobi. He has in the fic, handled Renga [an A-rank missing-nin], manhandled Deidara [with little assisstance from Temari and Kakashi] and casually defeated Kurenai, Asuma and Yugao while those three were working together [that's at the very least an A+ ranked fight]. Oh, and he manhandled Sasuke and a more powerful version of Tayuya [more of her in the next chapter]. He's a solid A+ rank**_ _ **without**_ _ **touching Kyubi's chakra**_ _ **.**_

 _ **That being said, he can still get beaten -following an intense battle- by people like Jiraiya [mostly cause the old man knows most of his tricks] and a combo of Kisame and Itachi [at the moment, at least].**_

 _ **Erza and Mira are a rung or two above Jiraiya while any one above their level will decimate Naruto if they had to go all out. Like the Great Toad Sage told Jiraiya, Erza would easily be one of the toughest fights Jiraiya had ever faced [and he'd probably lose] and Kyubi is casually more powerful than all four of her guardians simultaneously. That being said, unlike in the original Contract, I'm having Erza and Mira be about the same level as the Ichibi. The in-story reason for this is simple: while Erza, for example, is an 'eight-tailed' kitsune, her form of energy is nowhere near as potent as that of the Ichibi. Put simply, the Royal Court of Makai (the Biju) posses an energy source that is significantly more potent than the basic resident of Makai. Grayfia and Miya are close to the Yonbi and might even defeat the Monkey King if it comes down to a full on battle (hence why Erza and Mira were deathly afraid of Miya and why Erza could barely restrain a slightly pissed off Grayfia some chapters ago)**_

 _ **Regarding why Erza and Mira were faster than Naruto two chapters ago: Naruto's top speed at the moment equals Erza's**_ _ **without**_ _ **any amps. In that chapter, Erza was in her Flight Armor and Mira used the Halphas to boost her speed. Hence, they left Naruto in the dust.**_


End file.
